Restart My Heart
by Kaaru Hyujiko
Summary: Hinata has a new mission: Make Naruto remember their love. But things aren't always so simple; there is a new danger that threatens the Ninja World. A danger that could erase the way of the shinobi from existence. Sequel to "To Prove Ourselves".
1. Time

Kaaru: Well, it has certainly been a long time...

Mitsuki: Yup, everyone's all grown up now...sigh..

Kaaru: Well then, let's start the story shall we?

_**Disclaimer: Naruto does not belong to me. **_

_**Note: *please read***_

_**This story won't follow the Shippuden storyline anymore but it will have some parts which do follow it.**_

_**P.S. Before reading this fic, be sure that you have read the prequel; "To Prove Ourselves" or else it might cause you confusion.**_

_**Btw, if there is an **__**MU**__** after a jutsu, it means that it is made up: Blahh no jutsu! (MU)**_

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**:: Time ::**

_"Mommy! Mommy!" a young Hinata called out, eagerly running towards her beloved mother._

_Said woman turned off the stove and covered the pan with a lid and then she turned towards Hinata, "Yes dear?" she asked cheerfully._

_Hinata gazed up at her mother with big, innocent eyes that held childish curiosity, "W-what's amnesia?"_

_"Well...when you have amnesia you forget everything or you could forget some parts of your life, it could be forever or it could be just for a while." she explained._

_Hinata nodded, her expression then turned gloomy "Mommy, if you get amnesia, will you forget me forever?"_

_Hinata's mother smiled, kneeled down and embraced Hinata, "Of course not Hina-chan." she said gently, "...I believe that all memories can never be forgotten, they are something precious to us."_

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_2 years. 6 months. 7 weeks. 5 days._

2 years had passed since the Sasuke incident, when all traces of Hinata being Naruto's girlfriend were supressed from the jinchuuriki's head and when he left to train with Jiraiya. 6 months had passed since Hinata passed the Chuunin exams and was unofficially titled "Konoha's Best Herbalist". It had already been 7 weeks since she had started working part time at Konoha Main Hospital with Sakura. And 5 days had passed since she began her mission: Make Naruto remember her, _no matter what_.

It was a cloudy afternoon in Konohagakure no Sato, but this wasn't an ordinary cloudy afternoon; Naruto was supposed to arrive that afternoon. Everyone who's close to Naruto, eagerly anticipated his arrival, but there was one person who was on the verge of fainting due to excessive anxiousness. Hyuuga Hinata. Naruto's..._former_ girlfriend. She had matured and grown taller since Naruto's absence, she had let her hair grow longer and it now reached the middle of her back. It still had that healthy shine to it, the one that could put Gai's gleeming grin to shame. She had indeed grown even more beautiful the past 2 years (even though she refuses to admit it), same with Sakura, Ino, Tenten and Kei. She was currently in LAB 4 of Konoha Main Hospital, where she researched about various plants to make healthier, safer, and more natural medicines, ointments, antidotes, cures and more. She quickly and accurately wrote down possible formulas for new medicines with her neat handwriting, trying to busy herself so that she wouldn't think so much about how she would face Naruto later. To Naruto, Hinata was _now_ a childhood friend, his "sister". To Hinata, Naruto was her childhood crush and later on became her first love and boyfriend. Hinata looked at her desk, which was littered with books and papers and caught sight of the number 104 on the bottom corner of the book that was currently laid on the middle of her desk.

Konoha Main Hospital: Room 104. That was where Neji was confined 2 years ago, when he got back from that terrible retrieval mission. He was in comatose for nearly a month but other than that, there wasn't anything wrong with him...well, that is if you exclude the strange spider-shaped mark that was _burned _into his wrist. It turned out to be a poison that would kill the victim on the desired date of the one who cast the jutsu. Fortunately for Neji, Kidomakaru barely had enough chakra so Neji was given a longer time to live. The poison would completely spread through his body in 2 years time, as indicated on the middle of the spider-shaped mark. Now you might be asking: Isn't it already past 2 years since the Sasuke retrieval mission? Well...Tsunade, the current Hokage of Konoha, Legendary Sannin and extraordinary medic; with the help of Sakura, her intelligent and skillful apprentice, and Hinata, Konoha's best herbalist; were able to cure Neji and take out the poison inside of him. Speaking of numbers, the number 97 entered her mind as well. Room 97, it was on the second floor. That was where Ino was confined. She would have died if those ninjas from Suna (who were conveniently a group of medics) hadn't been passing by. She woke up 2 weeks after and was discharged from the hospital. Speaking of Ino, she and Sakura were supposed to tell Hinata if Naruto had arrived yet. She gave a quick glance at the clock, 3:21 pm, Sakura and Ino would come in any minute now...

"Hinata-chan!" Ino's cheerful voice instantly made the heavy feeling in her gut disappear. She looked at the door and saw the Yamanaka there, dazzling as ever. Beside her was Sakura, beaming at Hinata with as much energy as Ino. "C'mon!" Sakura urged, "Let's get out of these uniforms and meet up with Naruto!"

Hinata nodded and followed her two bestfriends to the locker room. There they changed into their normal ninja attire. _**(Outfits are still the same as Canon unless stated so.) **_

Hinata put on her lavender shirt underneath an unzipped, beige, sleeveless jacket, her lavender mini-skirt over black shorts that reached her knees, tied her ninja headband loosely around her neck and finally she put on her black formal ninja shoes.Sakura noticed Hinata's gloomy expression and put a comforting hand on her shoulder, "You okay Hinata?" she asked. Hinata sighed and bowed her head, covering her eyes with her bangs, a sign that she was definately frightened and nervous. "Don't worry Hinata, I'm sure Naruto would be very happy to see you." Sakura said reassuringly.

"You think?" Hinata asked uncertainly, lifting her head a bit.

"Positive!" Sakura said beaming.

"But what if he won't remember me...?" Hinata muttered miserably.

"Well then, make him remember!" Ino chimed in, "If that doesn't work, make him fall for you again! It's not that hard with that pretty face of yours." she encouraged playfully.

"Y-you think so?" Hinata asked embarrassed.

"Of course!" Ino said, making gestures with her hands, "I mean look at you, you're beautiful and you're even more endowed than me!"

Hinata's face turned red as a tomato and stammered out a thank you, trying to ignore Ino's choice of words. Sakura giggled quietly and pulled both of them towards the direction of the Hokage Tower, where Naruto was probably headed.

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**Hokage Tower: 4:00 pm**

A Kage was expected to be a great leader, a wise person, one who could make the right decisions. That was Tsunade, Hokage of Konoha. She was a great leader...when she was sober. Unfortunately for Naruto and Jiraiya, she was currently drunk at the moment.

"BRAT! STOP CALLING ME THAT!" she screamed at the blonde haired teen. He had called her 'obaa-chan' again even though she had specifically told him not to a thousand times before, but Naruto, being his hard-headed self, continued to do so. Naruto crossed his arms in defiance and chanted 'Tsunade-baa' over and over again, which made Tsunade even more irritated. A vein could be seen on Tsunade's forehead and Jiraiya and Shizune slowly began to back away from the two, knowing that things could get ugly.

But Lady Luck was kind today, a knock on the door was heard, making Tsunade recompose herself. "Come in!" she ordered, no traces of drunkeness in her voice anymore. The wooden door slowly opened and revealed Hinata, Sakura and Ino. Naruto's face held a look of surprise as he saw how much the three grew. "Sakura-chan! Hinata-chan! Ino-chan!" he exclaimed, grinning widely. Naruto was wearing new clothes; he wore a black shirt underneath an open, sleeveless, somewhat high-collar, black and orange jacket and black ninja pants and black ninja three girls smiled back and said their hellos. "U-um, welcome back N-naruto-kun." Hinata stuttered nervously, she inwardly cursed herself for stuttering, she had long grown out of it, but she couldn't do anything. This was Naruto she was talking to, the one she loved and still loves. Naruto smiled at her, making Hinata's heart skip a beat. "Thanks Hinata-chan!", Hinata's chest clenched, _Hinata-chan_. She missed hearing Naruto's old nickname for him, _Hina-chan_. She also wanted to be able to call him Naru-kun again, but she knew she couldn't until she accomplished her _mission_.

Naruto was about to say something but Tsunade spoke up, "Save the casualties for later, right now we need to see how much you've improved." Hinata perked up, she wanted to see how strong Naruto was now. She wanted to know if she was on par with his growth. Tsunade looked at the occupants in the room and smirked, "I have the perfect test." The Hokage snapped her fingers and two familiar faces poofed into the room."Kaaru-nii! Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto yelled excitedly, hugging the two. Kaaru grinned and patted the blond's head, "Glad to see you again Naruto." he smiled and then gave a Hinata a comforting look. "Yo!" Kakashi greeted, his visible eye turning into an upside down "u". Kaaru gently pulled out of Naruto's embrace, "Meet us at the training grounds, 5:00 sharp. And that includes you three." he said, pointing to Hinata, Sakura and Ino, and then poofed away with Kakashi.

Tsunade cleared her throat, "You have an hour before 5, so I suggest you four spend some time together while waiting." she smiled, signaling them to go. The four bid the Hokage farewell and slowly made their way to the training grounds, talking and exchanging stories. Hinata smiled sardonically, and stared at the orange sky, listening to Naruto's tales all the while wishing that she could make him remember.

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**Training Grounds: 5:00 pm**

Being at the old training grounds gave the members of Team 7 nostalgia, they all remembered when Sasuke was still with them. Ino bowed her head and shared in their sorrow, even Jiraiya, Tsunade and Shizune who were hidden in the trees, felt their sadness. Kakashi decided to break the gloomy atmosphere, he held up two bells. The four younger ninjas' eyes widened. "The bell test?" Sakura said. Kakashi nodded, "But, with a twist." As Kakashi said this, Kaaru pulled out another two bells from his pocket. "This time we won't be splitting you into two teams, instead you'll work together. The objective of the test is to get these four bells from the _four _of us before dawn." Kaaru then slammed his palm onto the ground and there stood Mitsuki before them, she grinned and took Naruto into a tight embrace, "Missed you blondie." she said fondly and stepped back.

"Uum, sensei?" Hinata spoke out, "Who's the fourth person?"

Kakashi's eye crinkled, "The fourth person is none other Team 8's jounin leader, Kurenai.", after he said that, Kurenai's squad arrived. Shino greeted them with a curt nod, Kiba flashed them a smile and Kei waved. Their sensei, Kurenai, approached them. "Hello there, I'm glad that I can have the opportunity to fight against these four with Kakashi and Kaaru." she glanced at her students for a brief moment, "You three shall observe the way they fight and give tell us what you notice afterwards, that is your assignment." she told them. Team 8 nodded, eager to see Naruto, Hinata, Ino and Sakura's growth as well as the strengths of the jounins.

The four jounins and the younger ninjas faced each other, waiting for the older's signal. A gust of wind blew past and made a leaf fall to the ground, this was when Kakashi uttered a single word that started the trial. "Go!"

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_**That's the first chapter of TPO's sequel, Restart my Heart! Hope you liked it! Please take some time and click the Review button and give your comments! :D**_


	2. Look How Far We've Gone

**Kaaru: Everything's greeeeeeen!**

**Mitsuki: *sweatdrop* Errr...I feel that I shouldn't comment.**

**Ino: On with the story!**

**Disclaimer: Naruto does not belong to me. Yadda yadda yadda...**

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**::Look How Far We've Gone::**

Naruto and the others quickly jumped into the thick foliage to think of a plan. The four older ninjas decided to give them a few moments to think of a strategy and then assess their skills. Team 8, Tsunade, Jiraiya and Shizune watched with observant eyes.

Meanwhile, the younger ninjas began formulating a plan. Sakura began to speak in hushed whispers, "Let's see...from what I've heard, Kurenai-sensei specializes in genjutsu, which means she'll be in the back lines, waiting for the right time to trap us in a genjutsu. Kaaru-sensei and Mitsuki-sensei use water-based jutsus and they work together, Kakashi-sensei is very well-balanced in all fields and will probably take the front."

Naruto then spoke, "Kaaru-nii and Mitsuki-nee also use weapons, Kaaru-nii uses a sword and Mitsuki a bow and arrow."

"Let's not forget that Kaaru-sensei and Kakashi-sensei have a kekai genkai." Ino added in.

"So what's the best way to attack?" Hinata asked, "Should we break them apart? Should we fight together? One-on-one or four-on-four?"

Sakura's eyebrows scrunched together, "Well, if they work together, we're screwed. If we fight them one-on-one, we don't know if we can get all of the bells." A few seconds of silence washed over them.

Hinata was the one who broke the silence, "What if we seperate them from each other, then all four of us will attack them one by one?" she suggested.

Sakura's eyes lit up, "Yes, that could work. But how exactly do we break them up?" she questioned, "Genjutsu is the only thing that comes to my mind but since they have Kurenai, it'll be difficult."

Ino then had a great idea, "I know!"

Naruto, Hinata and Sakura sent her curious glances. Ino motioned them closer, "You see, we..."

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"I think that's enough time." Kakashi said, "Should we go bring them out?"

Nobody got a chance to answer because a kunai suddenly pierced the ground below. "Explosive tag." Kaaru said, which made the four of them jump away from the explosion's range before it could combust. A loud boom resounded through the area as the tag exploded but Naruto and the others weren't done yet, a circular object, the size of a tennis ball, rolled onto the place the four jounins were supposed to land on. Kakashi, Kaaru, Kurenai and Mitsuki were forced to shut their eyes when a bright light erupted from the ball. This was exactly what the younger nins wanted. Thick, green vines shot out from the treetops and wrapped aroung Kakashi, Mitsuki and Kaaru's ankles, then it flung them far into different locations in the training area. Kakashi was thrown to the right side of the area, Kaaru to the left, Mitsuki had unsummoned herself so she wouldn't be separated from Kaaru. That left Kurenai the only one left; Naruto, Sakura, Hinata and Ino quickly moved into position.

"That was a good strategy." Shino commented. Kei and Kiba nodded in agreement, eyes glued to the battle in front of them.

Kurenai felt her feet touch the hard, crunchy ground and opened her ruby eyes, somewhat surprised that she found all four of the students in front of her. "So this is your plan." she said, "Divide and conquer hmm? Well, if you thought that you could easily take me out, then you're badly mistaken." she then made a few quick handsigns and dissolved into a flurry of petals.

Naruto, Sakura, Hinata and Ino tensed, knowing that Kurenai could be anywhere. Hinata then pumped chakra into her eyes and activated her byakugan, there was no trace of Kurenai's chakra, she frowned. "I don't see any of her chakra around." she said, "Oh wait! Cover your ears!"

But it was too late, a soft, haunting melody floated around them, signaling that they were already caught in Kurenai's genjutsu. "KAI!" they all said in unison, but the melody still rang around them. Kurenai's voice was then heard, "That's not gonna work on the genjutsu." her voice stated, "In this genjutsu, you must use your wits."

"Wit?" Naruto asked, but he didn't receive an answer instead, a wilted rose petal fell on his arm. He look puzzled for a moment, but then it turned to pain and surprise as the petal sent a burning sensation through his whole arm. "Don't let the petals touch you!"

Hinata, Ino and Sakura nodded, manuevering themselves from the gentle rain of wilted petals. Then they noticed the petals began to fall in bigger amounts. Hinata then brought her fingers close to her lips, "Shuggohakke Rokujou Yonshou" her hands glowed with chakra and Hinata began to weave the chakra into a dome around them, but to her surprise, her chakra dome dissapated in a few seconds. Kurenai's voice then said, "In this genjutsu you must use wit." she repeated, then the haunting melody grew louder and the four heard a small voice speak with the music. The petals also fell down faster.

_I am the beginning of __**war**_

_I am the center of __**peace**_

_I am the ending of __**trust**_

_I bring __**love **__to an end_

_And bring __**reality**__ to a start_

The words were repeated again and again, each time the wilted petals rained down harder, "It's a riddle!" Sakura winced as three petals grazed her leg. "We need to hurry up and solve it!"

"Hate is the beginning of war right? And hate is the ending of trust and love. It also brings reality in a way." Ino said.

"Is it hate?" Naruto yelled.

There was no answer, the small voice just repeated the riddle. "I guess that's a no." Ino said, holding the back of her neck, which a petal touched.

Sakura's brain began to think of possible answers. _'Hate was wrong because it's not the center of peace. Is it a promise? A broken promise can begin a war, it can also end trust and love, it can also show you reality. A promise kept can be the center of peace as well as show reality too.'_

"Is it promise?" Sakura voiced out.

Again, the voice just repeated itself. The petals were already too many to evade, it was hurting them now. They needed to answer the question ASAP.

"WAIT!" Hinata yelled, "I know the answer!"

Naruto, Sakura and Ino looked at her, hoping she would be right.

"The beginning of war is W. The center of peace is A. The ending of trust is T. The end of love is E. The start of reality is R." she stated confidently, "W, a, t, e, r. Water!"

After Hinata said the word, the petals slowed down and the voice faded. But the melody stilled played, which worried them. "Very good." Kurenai's voice said, "But it's still not finished." The wilted petals were still falling, even though it was slower. "What else do we have to do?!" Naruto exclaimed.

"Water...water..." Hinata's eyes landed on the nearby river, "Water! Everyone, jump into the river. Now!" she ordered.

The four felt the cold water surround them and then they found that the melody stopped and in front of them was Kurenai, kunai in hand. "You have until dawn to get the bells, it's already 7:00 pm now. Better hurry before Kakashi, Kaaru and Mitsuki regroups."

And hurry they did, before Kurenai could react, Sakura punched the ground, making it crack under her chakra-induced strike. Kurenai staggered backward, Naruto took this as an opening. He summoned a shadow clone and both of them began to engage Kurenai in taijutsu. Naruto pulled his arm back and delivered a punch to Kurenai's stomach while his clone attacked from behind and struck her back. The genjutsu-user coughed up blood from both attacks and fell down on her hands and knees. "Naruto, get the bell!" Sakura shouted. Naruto didn't need to be told twice; he reached for the bell that was on Kurenai's hip, but before he could snatch it, Kurenai's hand shot forward and threw a kunai at Naruto.

"Naruto! Look out!" Hinata cried out in concern, but after these words flew out of her mouth, the kunai had already implanted itself in the blond's chest. But Naruto just smiled and disappeared in a puff of smoke. _'It was the clone? But where's...' _Kurenai let out a gasp as the ground beneath her gave way and out came Naruto, who quickly executed an uppercut and hit the underside of the jounin's jaw. Naruto once again reached out to snatch the bell but Kurenai retaliated with a roundhouse kick in mid-air and sent him into a tree. She then sensed a presence behind her and ducked just in time as Sakura's fist went for her head. Kurenai did a legsweep and made Sakura's knees buckle, before Tsunade's apprentice could regain her equilibrium; Kurenai did a fast series of hand signs and then put her fingers on both sides of Sakura's head. _'U-ugh! She's paralyzing me.' _Sakura realized as her limbs slacked.

"Kusaton: Hana Hiru! (Grass Element: Flower Leech **MU**)" Ino came to the rosette's rescue. Small flowers that looked like bluebells sprouted underneath Kurenai and crawled up her legs and latched onto her skin and started to drain her chakra; said jounin was surprised and let go of Sakura before her genjutsu could be completed, then she began to hack at the plants around her legs. This was all Sakura needed, when she regained her mobility, she swiped the bell from Kurenai and jumped away. The jounin finally managed to get free and moved to get the bell back, but Hinata had other plans. She delivered quick and fluid Mizu-ken strikes on Kurenai and finished with a Hakke Kushou on the jounin, which sent her rolling on the forest floor.

"They're good." Kei praised from the tree tops. Kiba and Shino merely nodded, too engrossed in the battle. Jiraiya, Tsunade and Shizune had the same thoughts as they watched, hidden underneath an invisibilty seal.

Naruto decided to keep the bell and securely placed it in his ninja pouch. "Now who do we attack next?" he asked his female allies. They all stopped for a moment to think; Sakura, the one who did the main strategizing, spoke up. "Kakashi-sensei seems to be a bit stronger than Kaaru-sensei, but Kaaru-sensei is with Mitsuki-san, which puts him into an advantage." she said.

"I say we go and face Kakashi-sensei first. Even though he's stronger than Kaaru-sensei and Kurenai-sensei, there's still four of us. And we also need to save some chakra before we fight Kaaru-sensei." Ino suggested; the other three nodded and decided to bring Kakashi down first.

"We need to beat him quick so we have some time to prepare for Kaaru-nii." Hinata said before she reached into her somewhat larger ninja pouch. She held up a small plastic container with dark blue, pea-sized soldier pills, "These are the new and improved soldier pills I recently created." she told them, "They're much healthier than regular pills so that means you won't suffer side-effects from intaking too much, and they replenish 20% more chakra."

Naruto, Ino and Sakura looked at the container with interest, so did Kei, Kiba, Shino, Jiraiya, Tsunade and Shizune. Konoha's Best Herbalist had done it again.

"Ehh, I have a question." Naruto said, raising his hand.

Sakura sweatdropped, "We're not in the academy so you don't need to raise your hand." she said deadpanned, "Also please hurry up, it's already 8:50. We still need to locate Kakashi-sensei and get the bell from him, not to mention that Kurenai-sensei might have regained consciousness and be looking for us _or _the other jounins."

Naruto nodded, "Do they taste bad?"

A vein popped on Sakura and Ino's forehead, "What kind of stupid question is that?!" Ino yelled in a hushed voice.

Hinata giggled and replied, "I don't know, I tried to add in a few fruit extracts to add flavor but I've never actually tried one myself. I only used them on some of the lab mice; so they still need a field test." she admitted with a blush. The three accepted the response and they ran through the forest, their spectators silently following them.

* * *

Kakashi heard a rustle in the bushes. _'Oh, they're here.'_. The silver-haired jounin pocketed his new book, given to him by none other than the sannin Jiraiya. Kakashi turned to the direction of the rustle and spoke, "Well, you sure took your time finding me." he stated casually and a split second lated he threw a shuriken at the bush. A second passed and nothing happened. Kakashi quirked an eyebrow and wondered whether it was his team in the bushes or if it was an inhabitant of the forest. He was brought out of his musings though as all of the bushes around him suddenly started to shake. _'What is this?' _He unveiled his sharingan and readied himself for what he assumed were Naruto's shadow clones behind the bushes. But the attack he had expected didn't come from the foliage, but instead from the air. "Raiton: Raikyuu no Jutsu!" a ball of lightning sparked on Naruto's hand as he thrust it into Kakashi's face, but the jounin used a last second substitution jutsu. "Where is he?" Naruto looked around and waited for a sign. He didn't need to wait long before the sound of Kakashi's Chidori filled the air. The blond jinchuuriki spun around and saw that Kakashi was already a few feet away from him. Naruto instinctively covered his face with his arms, but just before the Chidori could make contact; ten shadow clones jumped out of the bushes and latched onto Kakashi. The jounin was forced to cancel his chidori and threw the clones off of him, he then did a mid-air roundhouse kick and dispelled them. He looked at his hip and found that the bell was no longer there. He glanced left and right to see where it might be, but it was nowhere to be seen. While Kakashi was distracted, Naruto attacked him, "RASENGAN!" he yelled and thrust the rotating ball of chakra into Kakashi's gut. Naruto watched his sensei fly into a bush, "Ino, get the bell!" he shouted.

The sound of branches rustling was then heard, after a minute or two, Ino yelled. "It's not on him!" she told Naruto. The blond looked surprised, "But where is it then?" he questioned, "Bring Kakashi-sensei out." Ino then stepped out of the bushes with Kakashi bound by sturdy vines. Naruto glared at the jounin, "Where's the bell Kakashi-sensei?"

Kakashi shook his head, "Tsk, tsk, tsk. Is that the proper way of talking to your sensei, Naruto-kun?" Naruto's eyes narrowed, the silver-haired jounin was trying to buy some time, "Don't beat around the bush Kakashi-sensei, where is it?". Kakashi shook his head, "I don't know. It got lost while your clones were on me. I thought it was with _you_." he then smiled, "Well now, if it got lost then that means you have to find it or else you lose.". Naruto was about to speak but Kakashi suddenly snapped the vines that bounded his hands and feet, "But I can't let you do that now can I?" he said before he whispered an inaudible jutsu that made the ground moisten and become viscuous. "Q-quicksand!" Ino cried out.

Naruto looked at the bushes, "Sakura, we need help! Hinata find the bell as fast as you can!" he ordered. Sakura shot out of her hiding place while Hinata stayed low, Byakugan activated. Sakura rushed at Kakashi with her ninja speed and aimed a punch at his head, but Kakashi bent to the left and and delivered a hand chop at Sakura's side. The rosette flinched and made some distance between them, she tightened her clothes and pumped chakra into her hands, this time it took the shape of a scalpel. She swung her arms in a wild and quick pattern, trying to inflict Kakashi with internal injuries, but the jounin evaded her strikes with minimal effort.

"Ino, can you pull us out?" Naruto asked Ino, struggling to keep distribute his weight equally so that he would sick slower. "Iki no Seibutsu: X! (Breath of Life: X **MU**)" Ino exclaimed and pointed at a tree branch. Pink chakra swirled around her hand as well as the branch, said branch began to grow and extend, it was now above their heads. "Grab on!" Ino told Naruto as both of them reached up and grabbed hold of the branch. "Iki no Seibutsu: Reverse!" Ino said and the branch receded, pulling them with it; when they were already above normal ground, they let go. Just in time as Sakura managed to hit Kakashi with four successful strikes, Hinata declared that she found the bell. She ran out of the bushes and to the very edge of the quicksand and stuck her hand in and pulled it out just as quick, in her palm was the bell. The four cheered and tied Kakashi up securely and for extra measures, knocked him unconscious.

"That's two bells, two more to go." Naruto said happily.

"But that also means we're going to face Kaaru-nii and Suki-nee." Hinata reminded, they sighed bitterly. They traveled a several meters away from the area so Kakashi would not be able to catch up of he were to stir. The four then planned for the next battle; Team 8, Jiraiya, Tsunade and Shizune secretly watching.

"I feel it's time to show our new abilities." Sakura told them with a confident look; her friends seemed to be glad too. "But before we do that, let's take in one of Hinata-chan's soldier pills while we give a brief summary of our new skills, so that we can be able to plan ahead how to incorporate them in battle later." she said strategically.

Ino was first to speak, "I've been practicing advanced Creation Jutsus." she told them, "I managed to create a plant hybrid of my own." she said proudly, "It's a cross between a Venus Flytrap and a rose. It has the head of venus flytrap, surrounded by rose petals and thorns of a rose protrudes out of its stem, which have lethal poison. I call it..._Inonus Rosetrap_." Sakura silently scoffed at the name, which caused a glaring contest between the two of them.

"ANYWAY." Sakura said, "I was researching how to create a virus. I managed to create a short-term virus that lasts for about two days, it is also somewhat harmless. It just causes severe loose bowel movement, which means very frequent trips to the bathroom for two days. If you don't drink enough fluids, you could die from dehydration. I have an antidote for it though. I figure we could use it on Kaaru-sensei."

"Poor Kaaru-nii." Naruto sympathized.

It was then Hinata's turn, "I was practicing with Shiro and Kuro aside from studying herbs. I managed to teach them a few support jutsus, which they could use on us later. Some of those support jutsus include protection jutsus, speed-increasing jutsus, a small healing jutsu and opponent weakening jutsus. I also practiced a little on ice-based jutsus and my special bell; Suzu Hana (Bellflower)." she finished, hoping that she impressed Naruto even a little.

Sakura nodded, Kuro and Shiro would definitely be helpful. "That's great Hinata-chan!" Naruto praised, Hinata smiled in return.

"Is it my turn?" Naruto asked, though he began to speak anyway, "I improved my taijutsu style, Kitsune-ken, so that it could be more useful. It now deals with landing stong and fast hits on the enemy, though it uses up more stamina. I practiced with my rasengan and tried adding some of my wind chakra into it, now I have a new attack called "Fuuton: Rasenshuriken"; it was troublesome to learn." Naruto told them, showing quick and small version of the rasenshuriken and the dismissed it, "I've also been experimenting with combination attacks with my summons. Remember the three-tailed fox I used to execute Plan Tidal Wave? He's name is Mizuki."

The three nodded, "The one with bluish fur and was the size of a horse?" Ino asked to be sure, "The one that used that water jutsu?"

"Yup." Naruto nodded in affirmation, "I've been trying to merge lightning chakra into the water to strengthen the technique."

Hinata decided to compliment him, "You seem to have gotten a lot stronger Naruto-kun.".

"Really?" Naruto said, flashing a grin that made Hinata's heart flutter inside her chest; the poor girl couldn't do anything but nod.

"Okay then, let's go all out on them." Sakura said, "Hinata-chan, have you spotted Kaaru-sensei?"

Hinata turned her attention to Sakura, "Yes, he's near here. He's about 50 meters west from here, at the forest edge with Mitsuki-nee.."

"Okay then. Hinata-chan and Naruto-kun, get your summons and make them hide as we battle." Sakura ordered; Hinata and Naruto did as they were told and used the summoning jutsu.

In three puffs of smoke, Kuro, Shiro and Mizuki appeared. Naruto and Hinata briefed them on what they were to do. "Kuro and Shiro, use your support skills on us when asked to." Hinata said to the pandas.

"We have supports; Naruto will be the main offense, I'll cover him and if the situation's dire, I'll switch to medic. Hinata will be in charge of defense with her Shugohakke while Ino will be the one to trap Kaaru-sensei and Mitsuki-nee, while also trying to swipe the bells." Sakura assigned and then let Hinata lead the way. The people observing them also followed.

* * *

"They're here." Kaaru told Mitsuki. Three seconds after he said that, Naruto and Sakura ran out of the forest and attacked. Naruto was headed at Mitsuki, but swerved to the right and struck Kaaru's thigh. Kaaru grimaced and pushed Naruto away. The blond came back though, making slashing motions with his hands; Kaaru bended backward as Naruto almost swiped at his face. "Weapon Kuchiyose!" Kaaru said, and then an icy blue glow surrounded his hand, "Aoi Tori! (Blue Bird)". A katana with a blue blade and silver handle with blue cloth around it, appeared in his hand. He swung the blade at Naruto and made a horizontal gash on Naruto's black shirt. "Awww! That was my favorite shirt!" the blond complained and twisted his body so that he could propel himself away from Kaaru. From the corner of his eye, he saw Mitsuki aiming an arrow at him with her "Hikari Ya (Light Arrow)", Sakura intervened though and delivered a handchop on Mitsuki's arm, the razor-sharp chakra around Sakura's hand sliced into Mitsuki's bicep and tricep; temporarily rendering them useless.

Kaaru was close to Naruto, swinging Aoi Tori in a swift and fluid pattern, while Naruto evaded each the blade as best he could, he was faltering though. Hinata felt that it was time for a support skill, "Time to show what you practiced, Kuro-chan, Shiro-kun." she showed herself from behind the tree she was hiding behind and the two pandas jumped on her shoulders, "Support Skill: Speed Increase." Kuro and Shiro exclaimed. The two's necklaces glowed with a white color and two beams of light flew into Naruto and Sakura.

Naruto felt a great increase in speed and dodged Kaaru's katana with ease, Kaaru noticed this and looked surprised but he quickened his swinging. They looked like they were dancing a dangerous tango. Naruto managed to create some distance between them and made a hand sign, "Kitsune Tornado! (**MU**)" Naruto thrust his arm out and fire shot out of them, they spun around Kaaru and slowly closed in on the jounin. Kaaru smirked though and shouted, "Water over fire!" he molded his chakra and formed some hand signs, "Suiton: Mizu no Tatsumaki! (Tornado of Water)" he let his chakra unwind and a vortex of water erupted around him and doused the flames, creating steam that covered the area.

Ino felt it was time to do something. She decided to release two miniature versions of Inonus Rosetrap. She took out two seeds from her pouch and threw it on the moist ground, "Iki no Seibutsu." she whispered and two small, thorny plant with the head of a flytrap with red rose petals and they had roots that acted as feet; they were about two feet tall. Ino controlled the plants and sent them into the steam.

Sakura took advantage of the steam that enveloped the field. She stomped onto the ground, which caused them to be lifted into the air. Mitsuki was startled and couldn't react in time as Sakura punched her square in the jaw with bone-shattering force. Mitsuki let out a cry of pain as she rolled on the ground. Sakura walked over and lifted her feet so that she could kick Mitsuki in the side and unsummon her, but Mitsuki's hand shot out and grabbed hold of Sakura's leg. "Goten Nibai Chakra Kyuuin no Jutsu! (Five-point Double Chakra Absorption Tecnique **MU**)". Sakure felt her chakra seep out of her body and into Mitsuki. The tips of Mitsuki's fingers glowed as they absorbed Sakura's chakra, not only her chakra but also her energy. Sakura struggled to get away but Mitsuki had an iron grip around her leg. The steam had already cleared.

"Support Skill: Enhanced Chakra Rejuvenation." Shiro said and a beam of white went into Sakura, this seemed to help her a bit. But just as the rosette was about to break free; the light around Mitsuki's fingertips receded, "TENKAI! (Point Release **MU**)", Mitsuki changed the chakra she gained from Sakura so that the younger kunoichi's system would reject it. Mitsuki pushed all of the transformed chakra into Sakura's body and the result was instant. Sakura's body convulsed and she fell on the ground. She was shaking violently and broke into cold sweat; her body was rejected the tampered chakra because it was foreign to her chakra network. Being a medic, she knew about this and she knew she would have to wait until her body gets rid of the chakra through perspiration.

"Sakura-chan!" Hinata cried out as she saw her friend hit the ground. This was bad, Naruto could be taken out as well if Mitsuki teams up wtih Kaaru. She needed to came to their aid. Before the ex-heiress could move though, a strange plant sprouted behind Mitsuki. _'That must be the Inonus Rosetrap.' _Hinata realized. The plant opened its head and three small thorns flew out of it and shot into Mitsuki's calf. The special summon gasped in surprise and pain; she fell to her knees and slowly lost consciousness. The a vine then went out of the rosetrap's mouth and snagged the bell from Mitsuki's hip, went underground and probably went to Ino. Hinata turned her attention to Naruto, just in time too. Kaaru was slashing the air and shurikens made of water flew at Naruto, who was trying hard not to get hit. But the Kaaru's Mizu Shurikens were increasing in quantity and several had cut him. Hinata rushed to his aid, Kuro and Shiro holding onto her tightly.

Naruto saw Hinata run in front of him, he immediately neared her, knowing what she was about to do. "Support Skill: Chakra Power Increase." Kuro said and Hinata was surrounded in a dim white light, "Shugohakke Rokujyou Yonshou.", a bright dome of weaved chakra enveloped them and Kaaru's Mizu Shuriken instantly dissapated on contact. The net faded away as Kaaru's shuriken barrage ended. Hinata however, did not see the last two Mizu Shurikens that was headed her way. Kuro and Shiro jumped in front of her and took the hit, dispelling them.

The three stared at each other for a momet, catching their breaths. Then Naruto formed a rasenshuriken, "TAKE THIS!" he shouted and threw it at Kaaru. The water specialist jumped out of the way as the ball of chakra landed and created a crater. Hinata looked at the sky and saw that it was already nearing dawn. "Naruto-kun, we have to hurry!" she shouted. Naruto nodded and engaged Kaaru in taijutsu. _'The virus!' _Hinata realized and ran to the shaking Sakura. "Sakura-chan, hold on." she summoned her bell, Suzu Hana. She shook it gently and created a quiet tinkling sound, "Melody of Healing.". When Sakura stopped convulsing, she reached into her pouch and pulled out a small syringe and gave it to Hinata but before she could take it, another Inonus shot out of the ground and grabbed it with its vine tongue. The two instantly glanced at Ino's hiding place and saw that she was now out in the open, with her hands in a unique hand sign. The Inonus ran towards Kaaru and Naruto, who were still fighting and flung the syringe, unnoticed. The needle pierced Kaaru's leg and the virus was injected into his system, the fact that he stopped moving and clutched his stomach was a an obvious sign. Naruto quickly grabbed the bell and moved away from Kaaru...before the jounin would start releasing _gas_.

The four regrouped and held up for bell and grinned, "WOOHOO!" they cheered. Team 8, Jiraiya, Tsunade, Shizune and then Kurenai and Kakashi stepped out of the foliage, "You all passed." Kakashi told them, then he turned to Kaaru, who looked like he was in great pain, "What did you do to him?"

Sakura spoke up, "A two day virus that causes diarrhea." she then held up a pill, "I have the cure though." and quickly went to Kaaru before something unpleasant could happen."

"Well then, let's all head to the Hokage Tower and have the assessment there, shall we?" Tsunade told them. They all nodded and walked to the tower.

* * *

_**Wewt! Finished Chapter 2! Hopefully I got better at writing fight scenes. *sweatdrop* Ehehehe...anyway, R&R! See you in the next chapter of RMH!**_


	3. Within White Walls

**Kaaru: **Here we are again for another update to RMH!

**Mitsuki: **School...school...school...

**Kaaru: **Yeah, it sucks. Hopefully school won't be as hectic as before.

_**Disclaimer: Naruto does not belong to me. **_

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**::Within White Walls::**

Naruto, Sakura, Hinata and Ino were given praises and compliments about their growth in the Hokage's office. Kurenai's students gave their evaluation on the team and all came to an agreement that Team 7 had gotten a lot stronger, they asked if they could spar sometime; Naruto eagerly accepted of course. But that was yesterday, today was a new day. The day Hinata would go and visit the Hyuuga compound. Some may call her shameless and scoff at her for showing her face in the compound again, but Hinata didn't care about that for now, she just wanted to be able to see Hanabi, Neji and even her father again; and maybe to see if the clan had changed even just a little. Hinata knew the guards most probably wouldn't let her in, so she would have to sneak inside and avoid the all-seeing eyes of the Hyuuga. It would be difficult for any other person, but Hinata knew of a place where she could slip in and out easily; her mother's garden. The garden was enclosed by a relatively high wall but it had a hole, large enough for a person to enter but small and hidden enough to be unnoticeable, at the end of the wall, which was near the forest edge. Hinata knew this because she used that hole before when she was a child. When her father would get angry at her, she would sometimes sneak out at night and walk around the forest. Her only problem now, was to see if they had noticed and fixed the wall.

After stealthily sneaking around the forests near the outskirts of Konoha, Hinata saw the unmistakeable white wall that surrounded the whole Hyuuga Compound. There were thick bushes that grew near the wall, she knew that the hole was behind them. She frowned as she crouched down and parted the leaves and branches as best as she could, so that none would scratch her...or poke her eye out. The ex-heiress sighed in relief when she found out the hole was still there.

"What're you doing?"

Hinata nearly jumped out of her skin as she heard a voice behind her. She pivoted and pulled back her hand, ready to execute a strike that could render someone immobile. Before she could attack, the person had somehow managed to trap her hand with a chain. "Tenten!" Hinata gasped, "G-g-gomen!" she apologized.

Tenten merely smiled and released the chain, "No worries Hinata." she then looked at the bushes that were parted, "What are you doing here anyway?"

Hinata fidgeted, "Err, I wanted to visit." she told the weapon mistress, "I used to crawl through this hole when I was small."

"Oh." Tenten said, "So Neji-kun and I aren't the only ones who knew about it..."

Hinata quirked an eyebrow, so Tenten visits Neji secretly? "Tenten, if you don't mind me asking...is there something going on between you and my cousin?" Hinata asked, she noticed that both of them seemed happy these days.

Tenten blushed, "W-w-w-what?! N-no! Of course n-n-not! Why would you t-think?!"

Hinata cut in, "Tenten, you're stuttering worse than I did before."

Tenten sighed and her shoulders drooped, "...Yes, we're kinda off secretly dating, after we confessed to each other back in the Retrieval Mission."

Hinata smiled at her, "That's great!" she cheered, "I promise not to say a single word about it.", she put a hand to her heart to show her sincerity.

"Thank you Hinata." Tenten sighed in relief, "Well, let's go in shall we? I still have to go to my TI training later, and trust me, Anko would and could find some sort punishment that I would positively despise". Tenten was part of the Torture and Investigation squad, she decided to join so she could use her weapon expertise. Anko had currently taken her under her wing to learn the ways of twisting a person's mind to the point they break. Tenten seems to enjoy the sight of criminals suffering, not as much as the sadistic Anko though; which was probably a _very _good thing.

Hinata stood aside and offered for Tenten to enter first, then she crawled through the small opening after the brown-haired teen. Both of the girls dusted the front of their legs and straightened their clothes. Pale eyes took in the surroundings; her mother's garden was as beautiful as ever. The grass was kept trim and green, the low bushes and shrubs were healthy and pruned as well as the other topiaries. The big Sakura tree in the center of the garden was still strong and sturdy on that small patch of land in the middle of a small pond, which had a wooden bridge over it. The different flowering plants were also in bloom, still as pulchritudinous as ever. It was nice to know that the garden was still tended to even after all those years that had gone by. Who kept the garden alive though? Few people knew or had access to the garden. Hitami, Hinata's mother, had passed away when Hinata was still young and the old gardener had probably retired too.

"It's beautiful isn't it?" Tenten said, breaking the silence that surrounded them.

Hinata nodded, "Yes...I...used to spend my time here when I was young...okaa-san's garden." she told Tenten, unconsciously biting her bottom lip.

"...Tenten-san?", a feminine voice said. Hinata and Tenten looked at the source and spotted a young woman dressed in a simple, white robe. She wore a bandage around her forehead, showing that she was from the branch family. "I see that you dropped by to visit again." she said with a smile, looking at Tenten. She then noticed Hinata, "H-h-hinata-sama?" she stammered, shocked to see the indigo-haired girl.

"Errr...yes, that would be me. And you are...?" Hinata asked.

The young woman blushed, "Ah, I'm Megumi. The old gardener's youngest daughter." she introduced hereself, "I used to come here when I was small, you and I would play sometimes..."

Hinata's eyes lit up in recognition, "You were the black-haired girl! Meg!"

Megumi nodded, "It's nice that you still remember me Hinata-sama."

The ex-heiress shook her head, "You can drop the formalities, I'm disowned, although I was still allowed to carry my last name, I am still an outsider here."

The black-haired girl nodded solemnly, "Oh yes, sorry.", she then turned around, "Shall I call Neji-san?"

"Yes please, and if you could call Hanabi too..." Hinata said.

"Oh no problem at all!" Megumi waved her hand dismissively and turned to fetch Hanabi and Neji, her footsteps on the red-brick path echoing around the garden.

Several minutes passed and Megumi was still nowhere in sight. Hinata had expected her to return shortly with Hanabi and Neji, but the three were still not there. Two birds flew above their heads, a squirrel darted up a tree, a yellow butterfly fluttered by, but still no Megumi. After what seemed like hours, they heard rushed footsteps and Megumi burst into the garden, face flushed and shoulders heavy. "H-hiashi-sama caught word you were here...I...I'm truly sorry." Megumi said as she bowed, "He wants both of you in his private study along with Neji-san and Hanabi-san.". She composed herself and turned her back to Hinata and Tenten, "Please follow me."

Tenten and Hinata gave each other worried glances but followed Megumi nonetheless. Hinata couldn't help but shudder slightly as she walked into the traditional building; it still looked the same as before. The wooden floor was still smooth and clean as ever, the round windows on either side of the white walls were dust-free and permitted light to enter the seemingly gloomy corridors. The pale-eyed girl listened to the sounds their feet made when they walked; they seemed to bounce off the walls and resounded throughout the empty halls. Only the Head Family and selected Branch members were allowed inside the Main House, so no one saw them. Hinata would have no qualms being seen by the Branch servants if ever they saw her though, she and her mother had always treated them like human beings, so she knew they would not be a problem.

Hinata's heart thumped as the three of them stopped just outside the double-doors that led to Hiashi's study. Hinata glanced at Tenten and saw her fidgeting and constantly shifting her weight from her left to her right foot. This was probably the first time the weapon mistress would meet Hiashi face to face. Hinata silently wished all would go smoothly. Megumi straightened her back and Hinata absentmindedly looked at at her midnight-colored tresses fall below her shoulders, Megumi knocked twice before she pushed open the doors.

* * *

**Yamanaka Flowershoppe **

"Hello and welcome to the Yamanaka Flowersho- oh Sakura, it's just you." a certain blond girl said.

"Wow. What a way to greet a customer." Sakura replied with sarcasm in her voice. The pink-haired teen wandered to the aisle with different kinds of tulips displayed and delicately held one red tulip in her hand.

Ino noticed this and said, "That's a red tulip, if I remember correctly, they symbolize a declaration of love.", the blond rested her chin on the palm of her hand, "Is there someone you want to give that to?"

Pink dusted Sakura's cheeks, "What are you saying pig? I simply thought the tulip looked attractive, that's all."

"Oh really? Are you su- "

What Ino had to say was cut off as the chimes above the door clinked against each other. Ino and Sakura turned their attention to the doorway and their eyes widened. A man stood there, barely able to hold himself up. He looked like he was in his early 30's with dark red hair and hazel eyes. But he was clutching his chest, his face body was pale and his knees looked like they were about to buckle, not to mention that his face projected severe struggle and fatigue.

"Sir? Are you okay?!" Ino shrieked.

The man was about to answer when he suddenly doubled over and vomited blood, he was shaking violently. "W-w-was a-attacked...cough...g-g-ive to Hokag-e...", after that the man stopped moving.

Ino and Sakura went into action. Ino retrieved the scroll that the man was carrying and Sakura began to examine him. "It looks like he was attacked by a medic-nin, and a very skilled one at that. The pulmonary vein that connected his heart's right ventricle to his lungs was precisely cut with a chakra scalpel. It looks like this guy managed to use some sort of medical jutsu which allowed him to stay alive long enough to get here."

Ino nodded solemnly and looked at the man, "It looks like this man is a diplomat-nin." she said, "Look at that badge on his sleeve, it's the Diplomacy insignia.". She pointed at the badge that was sewn onto the man's shoulder. It was golden with a large 'D' on it, a pen and a piece of parchment pattern were sewn beside the letter, there were also embroidery to make it look more attractive and official. "Here, you get the scroll to Tsunade-sama. I'll go and find some ANBU." The blond said as she handed Sakura the scroll.

The rosette nodded and shunshin'd out of the shop, whilst Ino ran out of the shop and called for help.

* * *

Hinata had expected to meet cold, emotionless eyes filled with disdain and a small frown, but to Hinata's surprise, Hiashi didn't give her this; instead, he gave them to the person beside her, Tenten. The poor girl shuddered at the calculating gaze, silently trying to put into practice all she had learn in her TI training: show no weaknesses in front of the enemy, be calm, be strong. Hinata decided to ease the tension inside the room, seeing that no one seemed to talk. "I-it's nice to see you again...Hiashi." Hinata said uncertainly.

Hiashi broke eye contact with Tenten and turned to Hinata, facial expression softening. "Yes it is Hinata." he said, not really knowing to say anymore. Megumi quietly excused herself from the room. Silence once again engulfed them. Fortunately, Hanabi spoke up, "Nee-chan, look." the twelve year old girl held out a familiar handkerchief, one that had a sun embroided on it.

Hinata's eyes widened, "Okaa-san's handkerchief...you kept it?" she said softly.

Hanabi grinned, "Yep! I made sure to keep this hanky safe all these years."

Hinata smiled fondly at her sister, "I'm glad."

Neji then spoke to them, "Hinata-chan, Tenten-chan, I'm happy that both of you came to visit."

Tenten blushed while Hinata smiled. Hiashi though, did not seemed pleased, "And may I ask, who are you miss? And what are your relations with my nephew?"

"H-hiashi-sama...ahem." Tenten cleared her throat and spoke more confidently, "My name is Tenten, I am Neji-kun's teammate."

Hiashi quirked an eyebrow, "Oh really?".

Tenten glanced at Neji, said person nodded slowly. "I...am also Neji's girlfriend." she confessed to Hiashi with her head bowed.

The Hyuuga head's face protrayed no reaction, "And may I ask about your upbringing?".

Tenten resisted the urge to say that it was none of his business and chastize him about his rude and laconic attitude, but the weapon mistress swallowed those words down her throat. She recalled another lesson given to her by Anko; never loose your cool. "My father is a skilled blacksmith and my mother helps him run our family business, Konoha Weaponry." she replied with a clipped tone.

Surprised appeared in Hiashi's eyes but it was quickly gone, Tenten had noticed though with her training about spotting body languages. Konoha Weaponry was famous throughout the Land of Fire, it had the best weapons, tools and armor. Hiashi must not have expected this from her. The Hyuuga head seemed to regain composure and spoke, "Okay then. Hinata it was wonderful seeing you once more. You, Hanabi and miss _Tenten_ may go and do what you wish _outside_ the Hyuuga grounds. I will have a guard escort you three out, so you do not need to worry about them thinking that you broke into the compounds, which you did. Anyway, Neji stay here. We have some matters to discuss." he waved them away. Just as he had said, a guard was already waiting outside for them. "Well, how about we go get some ice cream?" Hinata suggested, hoping to brighten up the mood. "Sure." Tenten merely said, while Hanabi nodded her head eagerly.

* * *

**Hokage Office**

"Kaaru, I called you here to discuss about an important matter." Tsunade told the jounin. Kaaru wordlessly nodded in reply, Sakura standing in the corner, watching the scene unfold.

"Sakura and Ino was given this scroll by a diplomat-nin.". The Hokage placed the scroll on her large desk, "He had been assaulted but managed to get to the Yamanaka Flowershoppe and give them the scroll. He is currently in the hospital to be given an autopsy." she informed him.

"I see, but why did you summon Hokage-sama?" Kaaru inquired.

"The seal on the scroll was the symbol of Sea Country. That means the Land of Crescent Moon, the Land of Shining Sun and other lands near them also have something to do with this letter." Tsunade told Kaaru.

Kaaru's eyes widened, "Can I read the letter Tsunade-sama?". At Tsunade's nod, Kaaru read the scroll.

_**To: The Hokage of Konoha**_

_**Matters to Discuss: Unknown Disappearances **_

_**Madam Hokage,**_

_**First and foremost, I would like to apologize for disturbing you with our predicament, but Sea Country is currently experiencing a mysterious ordeal. It would seem that several ships, whether it be small fishing boats or large cruise ships, have been disappearing, along with the people on board. At first we thought that it was just the weather, as we were experiencing terrible weather conditions for awhile now. But after a month, the disappearances kept going on, and because of this, everyone is afraid to travel. If this keeps up, we will not be able to commerce with one another. So we humbly ask of your assistance. Our deepest gratitudes.**_

_**Signed,**_

_**Sea Country Daimyo**_

"Unknown disappearances...?" Kaaru pondered, "It seems serious, and the fact that the diplomat-nin carrying this scroll was attacked makes this even more serious."

Tsunade nodded, "Yes. That is why I want you to accompany some ninjas to Sea Country to investigate this, it will be treated as an B to A-rank mission." she said, "Sakura, go and recruit who you think are best for this mission. You shall be the junior leader of the team, can I trust you with that?"

Sakura almost gasped, "Y-yes Tsunade-shishou! I will not disappoint you."

With that Sakura poofed out of the Hokage's office and went to find people for the mission. She needed someone who was skilled in reconnaissance, but Hinata probably had plans with Hanabi and Neji, so she couldn't recruit a Hyuuga. Kurenai's team specialized in reconnaissance, but Kiba would be no help in water. Kei used different kunai techniques including one that could act as a homing missile but she needed a homing beacon, in this case, Shino's Kikachu beetles on the target so she could use it, and it would be of no use in the mission. The only choice would be Shino, but Sakura didn't know if his bugs would be able to find anything _underwater_.

_'Okay then, time to find Shino and Naruto.'_


	4. Depths of Blue

**Kaaru: **Creepy crowing crows are crowing in the corny corn field.

**Mitsuki: **...Good for you. ANYWAY, enough of tongue twisters. Let's get on with the story!  
**Kaaru: **Impatient as always I see.

_**Disclaimer: Naruto does not belong to me.**_

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**::Depths of Blue::**

_"It's so cold." _

A single matchstick was lit, the pale orange light casted dark shadows upon the young girl's face, making her look sinister. Wisps of air escaped her pale, thin lips as she held the small matchstick close to her frail-looking body, letting the meager amount of warmth spread through her pale, trembling hands. She looked at her surroundings through half-lidded eyes. She was inside a stone cell, the rough and hard floor was moist and damp, the air was cold and wet. She had been put in a different cell; away from the people she had been with. Why did they separate her from her family? Why was she isolated in this cold and lonely cell while the others were together, in a cramped yet warm cell? Why was she different?

_"So...so...cold..." _she said through chattering teeth._  
_

She then heard the lock on the steel door click and a dim light filled her cell. They were here again.

_"Kekekeke...hello again little matchstick girl." _The man said to her, using the nickname that he had given her. The woman beside him crossed her arms and smirked, then she pulled out a syringe and injected a blue fluid into the girl's arm. _"Time to go the Experimentation lab again."_

The small girl's eyes widened, she suddenly felt her body heat up, making her skin itch. The coldness was gone, but it had been replaced by unbearable heat.

_"N-no! Not again! N-no more! Please!" _the girl cried out as she fell to the floor, the matchstick's flame going out. _They _did this to her, they had made her suffer and made her miserable. Those cruel, heartless people.

_"Delta, go to the Experimentation lab and tell Charlie to get everything ready." _the woman told the man, Delta.

_"Keke, whatever you say Echo." _

_"Aghhh..! Get away! No more needles! T-t-too hot..." _the girl then fainted.

* * *

Melon bread, cheesecakes, tarts and pies. Hinata loved them. They were sweet but not cavity-inducing sweet. Ice cream was on the top of her list, just beside cinnamon rolls. So many flavors to choose from, so little time (and money). Strawberry...chocolate...vanilla...cookies and cream...mango...even though Hinata was no longer a child, she was still eager to eat some of the cold treats. It was the perfect day to go out on a stroll around Konoha. The weather was nice, not too hot, not too cold; just right. White, fluffy clouds blocked enough of the sun's rays so that it was sunny and bright yet wasn't uncomfortably warm.

"This is the best ice cream I have ever tasted!" Tenten exclaimed, digging into the sundae she had ordered.

Hinata nodded, "This is my favorite ice cream shop."

They were currently in a small yet popular ice cream shop near Konoha Park. 'Frosties' was the name of the shop; short, cute and easy to remember. The place was normally packed, fortunately for them, it was a slow day. Hinata, Hanabi and Tenten had sat down in the table nearest to the counter. "Ahem, excuse me!" Tenten hollered.

A boy who looked about 18 or 19-years old, came out of the kitchen with a pencil tucked behind his ear, he approached their tables. "Well, what can I do for you ladies?" he asked with a flirtatious tone. Tenten's eyebrow twitched slightly at the guy's behavior, Hanabi tuned him out and continued to eat her banana split, and Hinata focused her attention at the guy's greasy, long, black hair to avoid eye contact. _'His hair...does he even wash it?' _Hinata felt her scalp itch at the thought of lice probably residing in the older boy's hair.

"Why yes, the bill please." Tenten said flatly.

The black-haired boy didn't seem to be discouraged, instead he gave a wide grin. "Sure thing cutie, I'll be right back."

Tenten clenched the edges of the table with so much force that it made her knuckles turn white, all the while drilling a hole through the guy's retreating back with her glaring eyes. Hinata giggled quietly and finished her vanilla and strawberry ice cream bowl. "It looks like someone's getting attention." she teased playfully and pointed her spoon at Tenten.

Tenten rolled her eyes, "Yeah, unwanted attention." she muttered under her breath loud enough for Hinata and Hanabi to hear.

The three of them burst out laughing, when the black-haired boy returned with their bill, the simultaneously ceased their laughter. Tenten and Hinata wordlessly paid the bill, Hinata paying for Hanabi's cold treat.

"No tip?" the flirt pouted.

Tenten grimaced, "Here's a tip. If you want to keep your sanity, your limbs and..." Tenten whipped out a kunai and pointed it precariously close to the guy's crotch, "...junior here, I suggest you shut your trap and leave." she threatened menacingly.

The guy noticeably paled at the closeness of the sharp object and nodded frantically, "Yes, yes! Have a nice day, come again! Hopefully when I'm not around..." he muttered the last part to himself.

Tenten smiled, "Very good. And we'll be sure to come again, hopefully without seeing your face here again." she said sweetly.

Hinata, Hanabi and Tenten burst into a fit of giggles as they exited Frosties. "Wow Tenten-san, you really are good at torturing people!"

The weapon mistress smiled at Hanabi fondly, "Thanks squirt, I learned from the best after all." Tenten puffed her chest proudly as she practically absorbed Hanabi's compliments.

"Where to next?" Hinata asked.

Hanabi's eyes lit up with mischief, "Now we go to nee-chan's place and paint each other's nails!" she squealed.

Tenten's face was filled with terror and her shoulders went slack, "No! I mean, let's not..."

Hinata smiled deviously, "Not a bad idea. Let's go Tenten-chan~". Both her and Hanabi tugged struggling Tenten to the new, medium-sized, two-story house Kaaru, Naruto and Hinata had moved into.

* * *

Sakura had noticed something weird in Kaaru's movements. He would sometimes sway slightly when he walked, and there was a slight flush on his face. Naruto didn't seem to notice this, she wasn't sure about Shino though, but she bets the he has already noticed. It could be sea sickness, as they were currently on a boat to the Land of Shining Sun, which was the safest place to go to at the moment because there weren't any disappearances reported there yet. Sakura doubted that it was sea sickness though, seeing that Kaaru was probably used to being on a boat, and if it was sea sickness, his face would be tinted green instead of pink.

As a medic she knew that she needed to make sure that everyone in her team was in good condition or else it would endanger the team and put them at a disadvantage. That was why she went to Kaaru's cabin during nighttime to check him.

"Ah Sakura, what are you doing here?" he asked with a hint of tiredness in his voice.

"Kaaru-sensei, I'm going to give you a check up, if you don't mind..." Sakura offered.

Kaaru gave a weak smile, "So you noticed? I wouldn't expect less from a medic-nin." he complimented with a chuckle that sounded a little too forced for Sakura's likes.

The pink-haired medic merely nodded and pulled up a chair beside Kaaru's bed, she then placed both of her hands above her sensei's bare chest. She focused her healing chakra into her hands, the green chakra spread through Kaaru's chest. "Hmmm..." Sakura murmured and placed one of her hands on Kaaru's forehead. "Kaaru-sensei! Y-you're burning up!" she gasped. She would have scolded Kaaru for going on the mission while running a high fever, but there wasn't time for that now.

Sakura put one of her hand above the other and pressed them on Kaaru's forehead, a familiar, soothing green chakra seeping out of them and into Kaaru, easing his discomfort. The door suddenly opened and a certain bug-user walked into the room, holding a bowl of cold water and a hand towel in both hands. "I assumed that you would be here." he said.

The pink-haired kunoichi smiled at him gratefully and instructed him to cool down Kaaru's body. Shino nodded and worked wordlessly, dipping the towel into the cold water and placing it onto Kaaru's chest and arms. Sakura and Shino worked to regulate the jounin's body temperature. After a few hours they stopped and rested, Kaaru had fallen asleep. "That should do, we'll have to wait and see if his body returns to normal tomorrow." Sakura said, placing the damp, cold towel on Kaaru's forehead. She let out a tired sigh and stretched, "Let's get some rest, I need to restore my chakra levels."

They weren't given a time to rest though, without warning, Naruto suddenly burst into the room, he seemed to be confused on why Sakura and Shino were in Kaaru's cabin, but his confusion quickly changed to bewilderment, "Guys! Come and look at this." he said, running to the deck. Sakura and Shino glanced at each other before running after him, making sure not to awaken the sleeping Kaaru.

The three reached the deck and Sakura and Shino was shocked to see what Naruto was so worked up about. A large whirlpool was just ahead, it emitted a peculiar green glow. "We've got to do something!" Naruto yelled. Sakura shook her head, "What can we do?"

"Nothing." Shino said.

"What do you mean nothing?!" Naruto demanded.

Shino coughed, irritated by Naruto's outburst, "That whirlpool is probably linked to the odd disappearances, this may be our chance to find out what is behind this."

Sakura shook her head, "We can't, not right now at least." the boat was suddenly rocked by a wave, causing them to stumble slightly, "Kaaru-sensei still needs time to recover and I'm low on chakra and we have no sufficient information yet, we need to get to Shining Sun first."

Shino paused to consider this, "Alright, I'll just attach one of my Kikaichu on the captain. We'll follow him when time comes."

Naruto and Sakura nodded. Naruto went to fetch Kaaru while Sakura readied the dingy. Shino then went to do his task, he attached one his bugs on the captain, whom he had knocked out first. "I apologize, but that action was necessary."

Naruto returned to the deck and helped a half-asleep Kaaru into the lifeboat, Sakura and Shino followed soon after. "Let's go!" Naruto cried out and turned on the motor, speeding away from the boat and the strange whirlpool.

Sakura looked back and found the boat reach the whirlpool and started to get sucked into the cold, murky waters. She didn't know why, but she silently prayed that the captain would be safe from harm, maybe it was just medic-nin instincts. After that, she returned to tending to Kaaru, covering him with a light, thin blanket which she had taken from the boat earlier. She focused her eyes at the horizon, where the sun had yet to rise from, she knew that the ride would be a very uncomfortable one. But with the assurance that Shino would be first to do the night watch, Sakura fell into a dreamless slumber.

* * *

Tsunade felt a headache coming on, not from her obviously large intakes of sake (sake actually helped her ease it), but from the puzzling disappearances that seemed to take place not only in Sea country but also around the small villages bordering it; the strange was, it seemed that it was that they were targeting _children. _Something was absolutely wrong. But the thing that was bothering the Hokage was _who _exactly is behind the strange kidnappings. It couldn't have been the Akatsuki, they only took jinchuurikis. Speaking of the Akatsuki, they were strangely silent lately, there wasn't any reported abductions recently. Orochimaru, her defective former-teammate, could be behind it, he did like to perform those gruesome experiments with that silver-haired assistant of his. Or it could be a new threat, one unheard of. Tsunade grimaced, she'd choose Orochimaru rather than another nuisance to the ninja lands. She'd have to wait for Kaaru's team to gather information to be sure. "Shizune! Get me more sake!" she barked, causing her assistant to stumble out the door to fetch more alcohol.

_'What is going on?' _Tsunade pinched the bridge of her nose. Being Hokage was so stressful, sometimes she wanted to resign and live an easier life, but she knew deep in her heart that Konoha needed _her_. She was the pillar of strength and guidance that the villagers sought for. Tsunade couldn't help but think of Naruto, the blond idiot had what it took to lead Konoha. He had the ability to change a person and make them a better individual, he had the power to inspire and motivate; he was Konoha's light, even though several hated him and barely acknowledged his presence. But the jinchuuriki had managed to win over some of the people who had once despised and feared him. With that thought, Tsunade was given temporary ease, which she probably needed after those long, grueling hours of stress.

* * *

"Naruto-kun? Kaaru-nii?" Hinata's soft voice bounced of the walls and resounded around the empty foyer. _'Strange...Kaaru-nii would usually be here after 4 o'clock.' _

The dark-haired girl slowly walked into the kitchen, Tenten and Hanabi following closely behind her. Her pale eyes roamed around the room before landing on a yellow piece of paper on top of the dining table. She quietly picked up the paper and recognized Kaaru's slanted penmanship.

_**Hinata,**_

_**Naruto, Sakura, Shino and I had to go on a mission to Sea Country. We'll probably be back after 2-3 days. Feel free to stay at a friend's house til then, just make sure to lock the house. Wouldn't want anybody stealing my chocolates. Hahaha...**_

_**Or you could invite some friends for a sleep over, just as long as they don't break or steal anything (especially my chocolates).**_

_**Love,**_

_**Kaaru & Naruto**_

After Hinata had finished reading, she instantly heard a squeal beside her.

"This is great! Let's throw a slumber party!" Hanabi exclaimed eagerly, Tenten also nodded in approval.

Hinata pondered for a moment, then shrugged, "Sure. I'd get lonely being her by myself."

A grin appeared on Hanabi's face, "Great! We'll have the party tomorrow!"

"But where will I sleep tonight?" Hinata asked.

Tenten put a hand on the shorter girl's shoulder, "You can stay at my house. My parents have been pestering me to bring a friend over, other than Lee and Neji."

"A-are you certain?" Hinata asked shyly, "I wouldn't want to intrude."

Tenten waved her hand dismissively, "Like I said, my parents would love it if you came over."

"It's settled then!" Hanabi cheered enthusiastically, "I can't wait for tomorrow!"

Hinata smiled, she'd take time and enjoy herself for a change. Being a kunoichi, as well as trying to somehow break Orochimaru's strange jutsu was hard work; she deserved some fun. And so the girl quickly went upstairs to her room to pack her necessities. _'Naruto-kun...Kaaru-nii...Sakura-chan...Shino-san, please have a safe and have a successful mission.'_

_

* * *

_

_"Chakra condition: Dormant, unused...proceed with chakra extraction?"_

_"N-n-no! Please! Stop this! L-let...let me go!"_

_"Charlie, initiate the chakra extraction process."_

_"PLEASE! I DON'T WANT THIS!"_

_"Heh, initiating the extraction."_

_"AAAAAAAAAH!"_

_"How's the procedure Charlie?"_

_"Hmmm...it's still not extracting all of the dormant chakra, just some of it. It looks like we need to do more research Echo."_

_"Ah well. Looks like you're lucky again little matchstick girl. Heh. Back to the holding cell with you."_

_"I...I..hate you."_

_"I know. Che."_

_

* * *

_

_**Looks like Naruto and the team's gonna be in for a wild ride. Hinata's going to be blissfully unaware as she has a slumber party. What will happen to them next? That's for me to know and for you to know on the next chapter of RMH. Please take some time to review! Thanks!**__  
_


	5. Shining Sun

**Kaaru: **Hey guys, we're here again!

**Mitsuki: **You know, we can't think of anything to say...so...let's move on to the story?

**Kaaru: **Moving on...nothing to see here...

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. PERIOD.**_

_**

* * *

**_

**:: Shining Sun ::**

Sakura grimaced. She awakened inside the small dinghy with Shino, Naruto and Kaaru, who were still sleeping. The floor of the small boat was damp and had puddles of saltwater. Grains of sand had somehow managed to get into her pink tresses and her neck throbbed with pain and discomfort caused by improper sleeping posture. The medic massaged her neck and professionally kneaded away the pain into a dull ache, she then took in their surroundings. They were washed up inside a secluded cave, the high tide must have pushed the boat into the cave. The dinghy was on an a small elevated island of sand, preventing them from being dragged back into the sea. Sakura spotted the mouth of the damp cave, it was just 25 meters or so away from where they were. _'Hmm...this place would make a good hideout if ever needed.' _Sakura off-handedly took note. It was just before sunrise judging from the sky. _'I better wake them up.'_

"Kaaru-sensei, Shino, Naruto! Wake up!" she shook them gently. The three ninjas squirmed a little bit and then woke up a few moments later. Medical ninja instincts suddenly kicked in and Sakura pressed her open palm on Kaaru's forehead, she sighed in relief as she found that the fever had gone down quite considerably. After stretching, Kaaru and Shino stepped out of the dinghy. "Status report Sakura?" Kaaru asked.

"First of all, you're fever has gone down and you'll most likely be back to normal soon, but it wouldn't hurt to buy some pills in case..." Sakura said to him before clearing her throat, "As for where we are, the tide washed us into this cave, the exit is over there."

Kaaru nodded, "Well then let's get out of here."

They pumped chakra to the soles of their feet and began to run on top of the still, crystalline waters towards the sunlight.

"It looks like we're near a beach resort." Kaaru said, gazing at the cottages built on the sand and numerous palm trees. No one was awake at the moment so they took this as an advantage.

"Where do we go first?" Naruto asked while running.

"We go the castle and get details." Kaaru informed them. _'My brother...I heard from father that he was here. So that means I could meet him...mission first though.'_

_

* * *

_

"Tenten-san!" Hinata said, nudging the sleeping girl gently. "Wake up! We need to buy things for the sleepover later!"

"Zzzzz..." Tenten snored.

Hinata raised her voice a few octaves louder, "Tenten!"

In the blink of an eye, Tenten's arm went under her pillow and produced a kunai from under it. The weapon mistress then threw said kunai at Hinata's head with dangerous precision.

"Eeep!"

There were two things Hinata was thankful for at the moment. First was her quick reflexes which were honed by ninja training. Second was her natural flexibility, which had been further honed by her former Hyuuga dance instructors when she was still small. Both of them allowed her to avoid being sent to the hospital because of a kunai through her head.

Tenten eyes snapped open and quickly scrambled out of her bed before bowing numerous times, "Oh Hinata! I'm so sorry! Ninja instict...ahahaha..." she said sheepishly and put her hand behind her head.

Hinata giggled, "So are you gonna shower first...or shall I?"

Tenten stretched, "You go ahead first. I'm gonna do some stretches outside first." she went to the door, "Don't use up all the hot water!"

_**15 minutes later...**_

"Ahhh...that felt nice." Hinata sighed in content as she finished bathing. She quickly dressed in the simple clothing she had brought, a pink polo shirt and jeans. Hinata looked in the mirrror and decided to put her long hair into a single long braid.

Hinata heard the door knob turn and Tenten stepped inside, a thin sheen of sweat on her exposed arms. "I made sure to save some hot water." she told the older teen while her deft fingers gracefully continued to braid her somewhat wet hair.

Tenten smiled, "Thanks Hinata! We leave as soon as we finish breakfast!" she said and then went into her bathroom.

When Hinata finished braiding her hair, she quietly exited Tenten's room and headed to the backyard. In her solitude, thoughts of a certain golden-haired boy -no, he was a man now- plagued her mind. She missed those azure eyes of his, so free and expressive. She also missed his encouraging grin. But what she really, truly missed the most was the love and care in those eyes that were meant for her, and the words of affection that came out of his mouth. Sure Naruto stilled showed her affection and love, but it was merely the love for a sister now.

Hinata felt moisture at the corners of her eye, she felt a twisting feeling in the pit of her stomach. It was an unpleasant feeling, the feeling of absolute hatred for someone; absolute loathe for Orochimaru. She felt the enticing urge for revenge bubble deep inside her. _No Hinata!' _she scolded herself, _'Now is not the time to mope miserably and go for vengeance. You are not Sasuke. There is still hope; I will never give up. I swear by it.' _she steeled her resolve and remembered the nindo Naruto and her shared. _'I never go back on my word!'_

She gave a small smile and pushed away her depressing thoughts, _'Right! I'm gonna enjoy myself tonight and after, I'll start researching for more information to help me.' _Hinata mentally gave herself a pat on the shoulder, she felt a sense of self-accomplishment.

"Oh there you are Hinata!" Tenten's voice called from the kitchen window, "Come on, breakfast's ready!"

"I'm coming!"

* * *

_"Naruto-kun, what are you doing here?" Hinata asked._

_"I just came over to think." Naruto answered._

_Hinata smiled at him making her more pretty, Naruto blushed at this. "Me too." She told him._

_She then gazed back at the sunset. "It's beautiful isn't it?" She asked._

_"Yeah…" Naruto replied not breaking his eyes away from Hinata. Hinata looked back at Naruto, "Naruto-kun, why do you want to be Hokage?"_

_Naruto just smiled at her and lifted his gaze towards the sky. "Because, I want to protect my friends, I want to protect my precious people, I want to protect Kaaru-nii…I…I want to protect you."_

"...ruto! Naruto!" Sakura waved a hand in front of the blonde's face.

"Huh?" Naruto said with a dazed expression, _'What was up with that sudden...? Errr..I don't even know what to call it. Flashback? But I don't remember if that even happened before...strange..'_

Sakura had a concerned etched onto her face, "Are you alright Naruto? You suddenly zoned out and stopped walking, is there something wrong?"

"No, of course not!" He gave her his infamous grin, "I was just...thinking about something."

"Well that something must be important I presume?" Kaaru asked, intrigued "Normally, thinking about something won't make you suddenly freeze in your tracks."

Naruto tensed for a while before he gave rubbed the back of his neck in a sheepish manner, "It's nothing. Let's go." he reassured before walking again.

Sakura quirked an eyebrow, but continued walking without further questions, Shino and Kaaru behind her.

_'That was nothing. Kyuubi must be bored and decided to tamper with my head...yeah, that's it.' _Naruto thought.

After manuevering their way through the crowded brick roads (The Land of Sun was noticeably more populated than the Land of Moon), they finally arrived in front of the massive, iron-wrought gates that led to the grand castle, which sat on top of a hill overlooking the island.

"Wheew..." Naruto whistled, "I wouldn't mind eating my ramen there everyday."

Shino and Sakura wordlessly agreed with him. _'It's three times bigger than Hokage mansion!' _Sakura thought, clearly awestruck.

"The Land of Shining Sun is known to be a very rich in aquatic resources." Kaaru stated, "There are also plenty of mines here, filled with all kinds of metals and minerals."

"Well, they seem to enjoy showing off." Naruto muttured, looking at the royal crest on the gate. It was a sun made of pure gold and in between was a teardrop made of diamonds.

"I concur." Shino said.

"Halt! Who goes there?" one of the guards questioned.

Naruto couldn't help but wonder if the heat even affected the guards clad in stiff and uncomfortable looking uniforms. He was already sweating in his short-sleeved jacket. He looked at Sakura and found that she too was sweating, even in her two-piece version of her usual kunoichi wear. Even Shino, who had shed his high-collar trench coat in favor of just wearing a short-sleeved white shirt, was also affected by warmer climate. Naruto glanced at Kaaru, who was talking to the guards, and found that he wasn't sweating even though he wore his short-sleeved jounin uniform (Kaaru had decided to finally wear one), he had decided not to wear his robe on this mission.

_'They must be used to this heat.' _Naruto thought.

Finally, the guards opened the gates and the team walked up the hill to the extravagant castle. Naruto took in the beautiful and large garden that grew on the hill side. "Wow, they have really nice flowers..." He had always been a green thumb. Various kinds of flora of different colors covered the lush and green hill. Red, blue, yellow, violet, pink, orange, it was breathtaking.

They entered the throne room and marveled at how well-designed it was, whoever designed it must have been a very good architect. The throne room had very large windows and allowed a great deal of sunshine inside, a large mosaic of the island was on the ceiling, there were several banners hung on pillars and the two thrones were elevated on a platform.

"Greetings your majesties." They said collectively bowed.

The king took notice of their hitai-ate, "We welcome you to the Island of Shining Sun Konoha ninjas."

"Thank you..." Kaaru recalled the king and queen's name, "Daichi-sama, Haruki-sama ."

"Now then, what can I do for you?" Daichi asked.

"We were hoping to find out more about the recent disappearances."

Daichi frowned, "Ahh yes, those blasted disappearances have been troubling us for a while now. Jiro!"

An old man with graying hair entered the throne room and bowed in front of the king, "Daichi-sama."

"Take these ninjas to Keitaro-kun's study." he then turned to Kaaru, "He'll give you more information."

_'Keitaro...' _Kaaru thought.

"As you wish your majesty." Jiro bowed.

"Oh!" Haruki exclaimed, "My son-in-law and daughter's coronation is two days from now, we would be honored to have you Konoha ninjas attend it."

"With all due respect Haruki-sama, but I don't think we-" Kaaru was interrupted by Daichi.

"Oh but I'm sure Keitaro would be so delighted to have his long-lost _older brother _there."

_'Crap.' _Kaaru paled, he was hoping not to be recognized so soon.

"Don't think we don't remember your face Kaaru-kun." Daichi chuckled, "So are you attending."

"Well, I'll have to ask my team first..."

"It's fine with us!" Naruto spoke for them, clearly wanting to spend more time in Shining Sun.

"Then it's settled!" Daichi grinned.

With that, the team followed Jiro to Keitaro's study.

_'I wonder how Keitaro will react.'_

_'__**He'll probably challenge you to a fight for leaving, then he'll suddenly get all emotional and finally he'll go back to playing with his mechanical inventions.'**_ Mitsuki replied.

_'He was always so predictable.'_

_'__**True.**__'_

_

* * *

_

"No horror movies!"

"WHAT?! But every sleep-over needs scary horror movies!"

"H-how about romantic comedies instead?"

"Hinata, we already bought one. Love Jutsu IV, remember?"

"But Tenten! I already said that I get _terrified _when I watch horror films."

"A suspense film then? One with lots of killing, gore and viscera."

"..."

"It's either horror or gory suspense, your choice." Tenten said, holding up _Night at Uchiha Manor _and _Kunoichi Row_.

"...fine, we buy the horror movie." Hinata pouted.

Tenten grinned smugly and purchased _Night at Uchiha Manor_, it was a film about a group of chuunin who were dared to spend a night at Uchiha manor and the usual stuff that happens in horror films happens. Some say it was true that the Uchiha compound was haunted, others say that it was ridiculous. But the compound was still made Hinata's skin tingle.

"Okay, we have all we need for the greatest slumber party ever!" Tenten whooped as she carried numerous bags.

"I can't wait..." Hinata said weakly, still regretting buying the horror movie, even though she'd pick it over gory films anyday. _'I'm gonna die of fright tonight.'_

_

* * *

_

_**...The next chapter's so gonna be longer. I promise! Hahaha, so Hinata's gonna be "tortured" in the next chapter and Kaaru will finally see his brother again. Please take time to review! :D**_


	6. Parties & Reunions

**Kaaru: **Yo guys! It's summer vacation! (At least it is where I live) Hahahaha!

**Mitsuki: **Ahh...here comes the blistering heat...

**Kaaru: **You complain too much, at least there's no school for two months.

**Mitsuki: **I highly doubt you'll do something productive in the next two months.

**Kaaru: **I'm hurt, of course I will!

**Mitsuki: **Mmmkay, if you say so.

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

**

* * *

**

**:: Parties & Reunions ::**

Past a dark and wet corridor was a large room which contained a huge jail for Kyuubi no Kitsune. This jail was located inside Naruto, said boy could enter the place whenever he wanted, but it would leave his body temporarily vulnerable. But it was not the time to be talking about that.

Kyuubi had been busy lately, she had been tampering with Naruto's memories; more specifically, his _sealed _memories. You see, Kyuubi had gotten attached to Hinata over the years. The wise bijuu pitied the girl, she knew what it felt like to have your heart broken, so she decided to help the kind ex-Hyuuga; and who better to help the girl than the great nine-tailed beast?

Ask any Yamanaka and they'll tell you that playing with someone's mind can be dangerous for both the owner of the mind as well as the one invading it. It takes skill, knowledge and extreme care to safely tamper with a person's mind. Fortunately for Kyuubi, she was already an inhabitant of Naruto's mind, that meant that she didn't need to break through Naruto's mental barriers but going through his memories was risky, because if she made even a slight mistake, it could severely affect Naruto. If Kyuubi did something wrong while trying to unlock his sealed memories, it could give temporary to permanent Naruto brain damage. But she was the greatest bijuu after all, she could easily manage to do it without any complications and side effects.

Orochimaru's jutsu was a powerful one, it could not be undone so easily, Kyuubi realized this when she finally managed to analyze the seal. It could not be erased immediately, it needed to be worn down quite considerably for it to be broken completely. Kyuubi had used her dark chakra in an attempt to weaken the seal, this caused Naruto to have the flashback. Kyuubi was delighted to have caused the flashback and tried to do it again, but found that the seal wasn't affected anymore. She quickly deduced that it would take more than coaxing and weakening the seal with her chakra, she needed a trigger for the flashbacks. She needed Hinata. If the girl were to trigger enough flashbacks, Kyuubi could break the seal.

Chuckling, Kyuubi praised herself for being such a genius -it seems that Bijuu had a thing for self-glorification- and began to formulate a plan on how to communicate with the Byakugan-wielder.

* * *

Kaaru felt the anxiety, he felt the curious glances from Naruto, Shino and Sakura and he most certainly felt the killing intent from inside the room; it looks like Keitaro was angry about something at the moment.

"Errmm...Jiro-san? Can we go to the kitchen and get a drink of water? I'm parched." Kaaru tried to prolong the time.

Jiro merely poised his fist to knock on the door, "I shall get you a glass of water later, after you and your companions are in Keitaro-sama's study. I'm sure the king wants you to see him as fast as possible Kaaru-sama."

Kaaru gulped and tried to stop his clammy hands from shaking. "Ahh...thank you Jiro-san..."

Finally, the elderly servant knocked on the wooden door, "Keitaro-ouji-sama, you have visitors."

The killing intent suddenly intensified for a moment before it slowly faded away, "Come in." a voice from inside said.

Jiro opened the door and stepped inside, Kaaru sighed and finally walked in too, after a few seconds, the younger ninjas followed soon after.

Keitaro, an eighteen-year old young man with short dark hair and sun-kissed skin turned to them and gasped. "Y-you!" he pointed at Kaaru.

"It's nice to see you again otouto..." Kaaru greeted awkwardly, "Though I must say, pointing is rude." he teased, that made him feel slightly better.

Keitaro's face turned red from anger, "So you finally decided to show your face to me!" he slammed his hands on his desk, the killing intent returned and doubled in intensity. "I heard from dad that you became a Konoha shinobi, and that you saved our former home, but couldn't you have sent me a notice that you were there? Couldn't you even friggin' w_rite _to me?"

Kaaru remained calm even though his heart was thumping so fast in his chest. God only knows why it hasn't jumped out of his chest by now. Naruto, Shino and Sakura just looked at the scene before them with interested looks.

"Being a jounin, I am very busy with missions and such." Kaaru reasoned out.

Keitaro's anger flared even more, "Oh really?"

"Really."

"Ohhhh reeeaaaally?"

"Really."

"Well I don't give a flying fu-"

"Keitaro-sama, please observe appropriate language."

"..."

Kaaru put on a desparate and pleading face, "Otouto, please. This isn't the time, we have something very important to attend to. Please." His acting could put Yamanaka Ino to shame!

Keitaro snorted, "Oh so seeing me again isn't more important?" he retorted.

"Of course it is otouto!" Kaaru cried out, "But both of us fully understand our duties."

"Quit the acting aniki." Keitaro narrowed his eyes, "In case you've forgetten, you're not the only one who can easily read if someone's faking or not. I'm a Hyujiko too."

_'Damn.' _Kaaru cursed, _'And I thought I was doing pretty well.'_

"I'm not listening to a word you say...unless you beat me in battle." Keitaro exclaimed.

_**'Ohohoho~ Taro-chan is still so predictable.' **_Mitsuki chuckled.

"I knew it would come to this." Kaaru said, "I accept your challenge!"

Keitaro smirked, "Good. Jiro-san, please escort him to the private training area."

Jiro bowed, "As you wish Keitaro-sama. I presume that the king and queen, as well as Miyako-sama will witness the battle?"

Keitaro nodded and walked off.

"This should be interesting." Naruto said eager to see the two brothers fight against each other.

**Royal Training Area**

The training area was behind the castle, at the bottom of the hill. It was covered by numerous trees so it stayed hidden from sight. When Kaaru and his team arrived, they found Keitaro, Daichi, Haruki and Miyako were seated on the elevated chairs beside the training area.

Kaaru, Naruto Sakura and Shino couldn't help but notice how Miyako looked stunningly beautiful. She had long black hair that fell in waves, porcelain skin and enchanting green eyes.

"Miyako...beautiful night child. How fitting." Sakura said quietly but loud enough for Naruto and Shino to hear.

The older Hyujiko turned to face the royal family and bowed, "Daichi-sama, Haruki-sama, Miyako-hime." The three nodded in return.

Daichi cleared his throat, "We will now start the battle, please refrain from damaging the area too much." he chuckled and gave the signal.

Keitaro took the initiative, he pulled out two strange looking gauntlets and slipped it into his hands.

_'It must be one of his mechanical contraptions.' _Kaaru thought.

"SEISHINGAN!" both of them yelled in unison. Their irises instantly bled into purple and a silver moon appeared on their left temple.

For a while, they just stared at each other's eyes. The training area was deathly silent besides the rustling of winds. The spectators looked confused at the sudden pause.

"They're having a mental battle!" Sakura realized, "Both of them are trying to get into the other's mind!"

_**(Mindscape)  
**_

Kaaru had managed to reach Keitaro's mind first, so the younger Hyujiko didn't have time to break into Kaaru's mind because he was too busy strengthening his own mental barrier.

The older of the two concentrated on finding a weak spot but it was to no avail. Keitaro had managed to fortify his barrier and left no openings for Kaaru. _'Well if there's no weak spot, I'll just have to weaken it myself.' _Kaaru thought.

He concentrated on the middle of the barrier and tried to bend it with his mind. When nothing happened, he tried again but the barrier refused to give. Kaaru then gathered his focus and willpower to try and pierce through it again.

_'Concentrate. Build up and release, then build it up again and release...'_

After trying several times, he became aware that he was wasting time, energy and chakra on trying to weaken Keitaro's barrier, it was too strong. Kaaru sighed and retreated back into his own mind, then he turned off his doujutsu.

Keitaro also noticed that their kekkei genkai would be of no use in this battle and shut if off.

"It looks like you've been training to get an impenetrable mind." Kaaru commented.

Keitaro smirked and nodded, "That's not the only thing I've been training on." he then raised both of his hands and pointed it Kaaru, senbons suddenly shot out from a secret compartment in the gauntlets and headed towards his brother.

Kaaru used his speed and jumped away from the needles' trajectory. They harmlessly embedded themselves into a tree. Kaaru saw a smirk on Keitaro's face and he went on high alert, what could Keitaro be planning? "Senbon Spray: Blind." Keitaro said.

His unspoken question was answered when the senbons released a blinding light and temporarily blinded him. Kaaru silently cursed as he was forced to rely on his sense of hearing. He heard a sudden movement to his left and his hand shot out and grabbed hold onto cool metal. Kaaru's eyebrow knitted in confusion and realized that he was clutching Keitaro's metal gauntlet in his hand. "Say goodbye to your little weapon otouto." Kaaru said and molded chakra into his hand, but before he could gather enough chakra, an electric shock traveled through his arm and numbed it. Kaaru quickly let go off Keitaro's forearm and sent his younger brother flying away by kicking his stomach.

_'Okay, I've created some distance.' _Kaaru thought and opened his eyes, he was pleased to find that his vision had returned to him. "It's my turn now." he said to his younger brother and formed a few hand signs. "Suiton: Mizu no Tatsumaki (Tornado of Water)!" a jet of spiraling water shot out of Kaaru's mouth and headed towards Keitaro.

"REPEL!" Keitaro exclaimed as he held both of his hands in front of his body. An invisible force reflected Kaaru's jutsu and it backfired on the water-user.

Kaaru saw the impending vortex of water and launched into the air, "Mizu shuriken!" Kaaru unleashed his signature attack and hurled hundreds of shurikens made of water at his otouto.

"That will have no affect on me. REPEL!" Keitaro once again reflected the jutsu back at him.

Kaaru released the jutsu and let the water fall harmlessly onto the ground, they created huge puddles of water. _'I have an idea.' _Kaaru thought as he eyed the puddles.

Keitaro took notice of Kaaru eyeing the puddles and decided to use it against him, multiple senbons shot out and landed inside the puddles of water. As Kaaru was only a few feet away from landing into one, Keitaro activated his senbons, "Senbon Spray: Electrify."

Kaaru's ninja reflexes allowed him to use a quick substitution jutsu and this provided him the cover of the foliage.

Keitaro looked around and tried to figure out where Kaaru was. His ear twitched at the sound of a rustle in a tree and sent another spray of senbons at it. He heard a thump and smirked. But it was quickly swiped off his face when Kaaru's katana, Aoi Tori, suddenly came from above and pierced Keitaro's royal robe, pinning him down. Then he saw Kaaru coming down from the sky, his feet poised to stomp on his chest. Keitaro moved his forearms over his chest and clenched his teeth as they took the impact from Kaaru's drop, even with his gauntlets on he could still feel the pain.

Knowing that staying in contact with the gauntlets were dangerous, Kaaru quickly grabbed his katana and created some distance between them. When Keitaro gathered his bearings, he rushed at Kaaru with his fist cocked back. "Steel Knuckle!" he shouted.

Kaaru smirked, his younger brother had forgotten that there were still puddles on the ground. He manipulated the water and used it to fling himself into the air, causing Keitaro to drive his fist into another tree instead of him. Kaaru saw his chance and decided that using close-combat kenjutsu would be best for their battle, "Aoi Tori no Hiko! (Flight of Blue Bird **MU**)". A duplicate katana appeared in Kaaru's other hand, both of the weapons glinted in the sunlight. Kaaru executed several graceful flips and when he got near Keitaro, he did multiple slashes so fast that the two katanas were only a blue blur. He finished with kick to Keitaro's back and used the momentum to execute a backflip to put distance between them again.

Keitaro spat the blood pooling in his mouth and ripped his arm out of the tree bark, "Heh, you've managed to rough me up quite a bit." he said; there were many thin, angry red cuts on his body. They weren't too deep but it still caused pain, which would hinder Keitaro's movement. "Time to get serious. Compact Chakra Sphere!".

Glowing balls of chakra shot out from Keitaro's gauntlets and flew toward Kaaru too fast for him to register, they detonate when they got near him. "Augh!" he shouted as he was thrown into a tree by the explosion's force. Kaaru got up and wobbled a bit, but he was given no time to do anything else when another wave of spheres came flying at him. He acted quickly and hid behind the tree he crashed into, using it to shield him from the explosion. He quickly found out that the chakra sphere's purpose was not to blow the target to bits, rather it would simply throw him away. The only way chakra bombs could hurt was if he crashed into something because of the impact of the explosion.

He pieced together the his observations as he evaded the bombs as best he could. Keitaro relied on long-ranged attacks, he was vulnerable when in close range, but he makes it difficult to get close enough. Mid-range and far-range ninjutsu won't work due to his ability to repel them. The water puddles have already been absored into the ground, so he couldn't use them to his advantage. It became clear to Kaaru that he would have to use genjutsu to render Keitaro immobile long enough to beat him. _'I have the perfect genjutsu. I'll have to thank Kakashi for this one.'_

The bushes provided him the cover he needed, after performing a set of required hand signs, Kaaru whispered "Magen: Narakumi no Jutsu. (Demonic Illusion: Hell Viewing Technique)"

A gust of wind passed and a circle of leaves spun around Keitaro. The younger Hyujiko watched them spin around him suspiciously and readied himself for an attack, but the leaves shortly fell to the ground when the died down.

"I recognize that jutsu!" Sakura whispered to Naruto, who nodded, eyes still glued to the battle.

Keitaro flung three kunai knives at one of the tree tops and heard the sickening sound of metal piercing flesh. Not long after he threw the kunai, Kaaru's motionless body fell from the branch and sprawled out onto the dirt, Keitaro's kunais lodged deep inside his brother's chest, forehead and thigh. The younger of the two gave out a strangled cry and felt like emptying the contents of his stomach; he had never actually experienced seeing someone mortally injured.

"Aniki!" Keitaro cried out and ran to his brother's still form, "I...I'm so sorry! I d-didn't mean to!" he tried to awaken his fallen relative. "Damn it! Wake up!" he yelled desparately.

A second later, Keitaro felt cold steel ghosting above his jugular vein, "Got you." Kaaru simply said and dispelled his genjutsu, his imaginary duplicate faded out of existence.

"Winner, Hyujiko Kaaru!" Daichi announced.

"You've gotten a lot stronger otouto." Kaaru complimented and put away his katana, he offered Keitaro a hand.

Keitaro took the hand and hoisted himself up, "Thanks, I worked hard. I see that you haven't been slacking off aniki." he praised his older brother, "Now then, you wanted to talk about an important matter?"

Kaaru and the team nodded.

"Very well then." Keitaro said, "Let's go to my study and discuss this. Jiro-san, please prepare some tea."

"Hai." Jiro bowed and did as he was told.

* * *

"Aaaah!" Hinata once again gave a startled shriek as another scary scene unfolded from the movie Tenten insisted on buying. Who knew dead, ectoplasmic Uchihas were still able to able to give the greatest death glare in the five great nations?

Ino huddled close to her side, hugging a pillow to her chest so that she could bury her face in it and muffle a scream. Kei was on Hinata's other side, her wide eyes were glued to the television screen and her trembling fingers reached to get some popcorn. Tenten was seated on Ino's other side, she looked at the priceless faces of the unfortunate chuunins who were avoiding being possessed by the Uchiha spirits, there was a sadistic gleam in the weapon mistress eyes; she was enjoying every minute of the movie characters' misfortunes. Anko's insanity was apparently contagious.

When the credits started rolling, Hinata's throat was raw from screaming, Ino's pillow was at the brink of bursting, bits of popcorn had fallen all over Sakura and Tenten was laughing hysterically.

"I'll get a broom." Kei said and dusted iodized salt from her oversized white shirt.

Hinata fiddled with the hem of her lavender night gown, "I-I think I'm won't be able to s-sleep tonight." she sighed.

Ino sprang up from the couch and stretched, making her blue pajama top ride up a little and show her bellybutton. "That was awesome! Too bad Forehead's out on a mission."

Tenten also stood up and waved her arms around wildly, making the grains of salt from the popcorn fall from her black tank top. "I know right! I knew I picked the right movie!"

Hinata sighed and decided to help Kei clean up, the image of ghostly ectoplasmic vomitus still fresh in her mind. _'I can see that a lot of people are twisted these days.'_ she sighed once again.

Time flew by unnoticed by the four teenage kunoichi who were so absorbed in exchanging girl talk which they had been deprived of for days. FInally, the girls noticed how late was and decided to watch _Love Jutsu IV _and just set the television to turn off by itself when the movie ended. Before the movie even reached the climax, the group of kunoichi had already fallen asleep sans Hinata.

Whenever she was close to falling into unconsciousness, she would remember a horrifying scene from the horror film earlier. Hinata sighed and decided to go out to the garden, which she had deemed as her sanctuary.

As she tiptoed past her slumbering friends as silently as possible, she saw Ino shift and groan. Hinata froze and prepared an excuse if ever the blond questioned her.

"Uhh..mmhmm...Shikamaru~" Ino moaned in her sleep, squeezing a pillow in her tight embrace. Hinata swore sweatdropped when she saw some drool there.

After making sure Ino was sound asleep, she exited through the kitchen door into the backyard. She leaned against a sakura tree and found the strong trunk comfortable.

The ex-heiress lifted her pale eyes to the sky, wherein she sought for solace. The midnight sky was like a curtain of darkness but within the darkness, the full moon suspended high up in the black and velvet sky with a panoply of twinkling diamonds strewn over the dark expanse of space. Hinata couldn't help but admire how the beautiful moon illuminated the night with its pale, luminous glow; it was breathtaking and enchanting as always.

Hinata envied the moon, no matter how trivial it sounded. The moon had a quiet elegance, it was mysterious yet comforting, silent yet unyielding to the dark night. It did its best to offer light to the world, it did not matter if the sun shined brighter than it, the moon was contented in shining quietly because it knew that its light was still important.

With the fleeting thought of trying to imitate the qualities of the heavenly body, unconsciousness finally tugged on the corners of Hinata's mind and she fell into a deep slumber underneath the night sky.

* * *

Kaaru was very much disappointed that he could not think of anyone who could be behind the strange disappearances, even after hearing Keitaro's information. It became clear to Kaaru that the strange whirlpools which caused the disappearances weren't _normal_, he was certain that someone was using a jutsu or a machine to sink ships and boats and pull it below the watery depths. But why? He had to speak with Shino about the Kikaichu bug he placed on the captain, they needed to know where the captain's location was to solve the mystery.

"Shino," Kaaru turned to face the young Aburame, "Can you still detect your Kikaichu's chakra?"

Shino pushed his glasses up his nose, "It's faint, but I can manage to track it down."

Kaaru nodded, "Good, we're following it tomorrow morning. Be prepared and be sure to get sufficient rest." he ordered.

"Hai!" the three chorused.

"Finally, we some action!" Naruto cheered before heading to the room offered to him. Sakura, Kaaru and Shino did the same.

_"Alpha-sama, it looks like we cannot extract all of the civilian's dormant chakra." _ Charlie broke the news to their apparent leader.

_"Hmm...how much can you extract?" _Alpha said in an ominous voice that made Charlie shiver.

_"We can extract 70% percent from a child and 60% from an adult." _Charlie informed him.

_"I see...so I presume because of this, they'll remain alive?" _

_"Yes Alpha-sama."_

_"Oh, that won't be a problem then." _Alpha chuckled darkly, _"As long as we harness enough pure dormant chakra, my plan will come to fruition."_

_"What of the prisoners?"_

_"Hmm...we shall release them once the need to change location arises."_

_"Understood Alpha-sama."_

_"Oh, one more thing." _Alpha said, _"Tell Delta tend to the prisons, I wouldn't like the smell of something decaying in here."_

_"As you wish."_

_

* * *

_

_**Another chapter finished! Please Review~  
**_

_**I found time to reread "To Prove Ourselves" and found that it...sucks, in my opinion. The characters were too strong, the fight scenes were too short, the character development was way too fast-paced, several scenes were sappy and corny and I kinda gave them strong, random jutsus that they only used ONCE. I'm ashamed of it...sigh. Hopefully, RMH won't be that bad...I'll do my best! Wewt!**_

_**Please don't forget to review~**_


	7. Into the Waters

**Kaaru: **Yo! Kaaru here.

**Mitsuki: **You seem to be unenergetic today?

**Kaaru: **I'm not getting enough sleep...sigh...there a lot of things on my mind. Ughh.

**Mitsuki: **Ever try meditating?

**Kaaru: **We'll talk about my recently poor sleeping habits later, right now we have a story to tell!

**Disclaimer: Naruto does not belong to me.**

**

* * *

**

**:: Into the Waters ::**

Beautiful red roses in full bloom, covered with sparkling dew was the sight Hinata saw when she woke up in the early morning. Hinata was confused as to why she was outside, but after a few seconds or so, she remembered why she was there...and what had caused her to go there. She promised herself that she would never _ever _watch any horror film ever again.

The cold morning air made her shiver and wrap her pale arms around her petite body; maybe sleeping outside with only a flimsy night gown on was not the wisest idea. She rubbed her arms to give herself a meager amount of warmth before she activated her Byakugan. _'They're still asleep...' _Hinata thought. She didn't blame them though, they hadn't slept until it was late into the night. The dark-haired girl decided to stay and tend to her garden for awhile first, then she would go inside and cook breakfast.

She kneeled down beside the rose patch and pulled out the weeds that had started to grow there. She didn't mind the dirt on her hands, she was a kunoichi after all; they aren't supposed to falter when they needed to get dirty. After she made sure the roses were weed-free, she went over to the other side of the backyard, where her medicinal herbs were planted. She plucked out the troublesome weeds like she had done to the rose patch earlier. When the weeds were disposed of, she took a basket lying beside the square plot of dirt and began to pick some leaves and fruits from specific plants. Her supply of healing ointments were running low, and she needed to whip up another batch before they'd run out.

After half an hour, she entered the house and found Ino, Kei and Tenten awake.

"Good morning Hinata-chan!" Ino greeted cheerfully, "Come on! Let's get cooking, it'll be much more fun doing it together!"

"Okay Ino-chan." Hinata said while she had a gentle smile on her face, then she headed to the kitchen, the other girls closely behind her.

* * *

"Good luck." Keitaro said to them and pulled his brother Kaaru into a brotherly embrace. They stayed like that for awhile before pulling away. "After this mission of yours, write to me 'kay?"

Kaaru gave his brother a smile, "Sure thing."

Miyako let go of Keitaro's arm and stepped in front of Kaaru, "Take care Kaaru-san." she embraced Kaaru and then bade Naruto, Shino and Sakura farewell as well as wishes of good luck.

"Alright, let's go team Kaaru!" Kaaru ordered.

Naruto pouted childishly, "Ehh...who came up with that team name?" he crossed his arms over his chest, "I say we should call ourselves Team Naruto!"

WHACK!

"Ouch! Sakura-chan, what you do that for?" Naruto whined.

His pink-haired friend huffed, "We are not naming ourselves team Naruto."

"Team Beef Miso Ramen then?"

"Not in your life."

"Team Supercalifra..."

Sakura cut him off with a glare, "No."

Their silent teammate decided that it was the time to speak up, "Ahem. If I may voice out my opinion? I find that our team name is not really of any importance at the moment. But in any case, I would have to pick Team Kaaru as the team name. Why?" Shino paused and pushed up his sunglasses, "Because I do not find being named after a fish cake (Naruto) or a type of ramen, amusing."

A pregnant pause filled the cold morning air after Shino's statement, before Naruto broke the moment of awkwardness. "If you wanted to name us Team Shino, you should've said it earlier! Pssh!"

Needless to say, he sported another bump on the head after he saying that, this time it was from none other than Shino.

"Yo. Save that energy for later." Kaaru said. "Well, as I was saying earlier. Let's do this Team Kaaru!"

This time no one complained against the team name, all four ninjas simply ran off into the cold morning before the sun rose. Each of them determined to complete the mission, but anxious to what might happen. Because each one of them knew that in the life of a shinobi, every mission you take has a great risk of dying. That was instilled into their minds on the day the decided to become ninjas. But even then, they were still human; they could still _feel _fear.

Shino had informed them that his tracker-type kikai bug was conveniently near the beach that was two miles away from the castle. The beach was called 'The Rock Pool' because of the big rocks that were in the water. They didn't know why the captain would be in such a place until they reached the beach. There were several caves along the rocky cliffs, Shino said that his kikai bug was in the one that was third nearest to the coast, but it was also very well-hidden by the rocks that protruded up from the water. The captain must have been washed up into it.

They silently entered the damp cave, they had to feel the wet walls because the farther they got, the darker it became. They just walked through the darkness, the only sound they heard was the constant dripping of water and their dull footsteps. Minutes passed and the tunnel split into two, one to the left and the other to the right. "Shino, where do we go?" Kaaru asked. He couldn't see the stoic boy, he couldn't even see his own hand! They couldn't use flashlights because they would be easily spotted.

For a moment, Kaaru thought that he and Shino had been separated. He could hear Naruto and Sakura's somewhat quick breathing, but he couldn't hear any sounds from Shino. He was about to sense for the quiet boy's chakra but Shino had spoken in the darkness, "My kikai bug and the captain seems to have moved...but it is strange."

Kaaru raised an eyebrow that could not be seen in the dark, "Why is that?"

"They were just a few distance left of here...actually, they are still there...but they are _underneath_." Shino explained vaguely.

"Underneath? I don't understand." Naruto said.

Shino cleared his throat, "Simply but, it is as if they fell through a hole."

There was another silent moment, "So you're saying, they might have gone into the hole and is now sinking?" Kaaru said.

"Judging from the way my kikai bug is getting farther, it is true that they are indeed sinking. But...normally a person moving through water is slow, the captain however seems to be sinking at a fast pace. The fact that my kikai can also breathe _normally _is also peculiar." Shino said.

"So you're saying they can somehow _breathe _underwater?" Sakura exclaimed.

"No...I don't think that's it. I think it's more of they're going down a tunnel or some kind of pipe..." Kaaru paused, "...or it could also be that weird whirlpool."

"Well, we won't find out anything by just standing here! Let's go!" Naruto shouted.

The team wordlessly agreed with Naruto; they needed to get moving quick. "Alright team, I'm gonna chain each of us together with a chakra-reinforced rope so we won't be separated." the jounin swiftly linked them together, not too tight so they could still move properly. After he checked the last knot, Team Kaaru ran into the murky darkness once again.

They heard the sun of water churning up ahead, and they knew that it was that strange whirlpool again. "I don't hear anyone." Naruto said, he then reached into his pouch and took out a low-powered flash bomb. It coul illuminate the place for a while without blinding them. "Ha!" Naruto shouted and threw the bomb, it glowed brightly and then exploded, but they only needed a second to see where they were. It was a large dome-shaped dead-end, and there in the middle was a big cave spring. The surface of the spring was disrupted by the spinning of water. Their assumptions had been right; it really was a whirlpool.

"We're going in." Kaaru ordered. "Stay close, and be careful when we reach whatever's down there.".

"Okay." Naruto, Sakura and Shino chorused.

Kaaru decided to ease their worry a bit, "Don't worry. I specialize with water-based jutsu. If something goes wrong, I'll get us out."

With that, Team Kaaru dove into the spring.

Needless to say, Naruto found out that getting seasickness on a boat was much more better than getting seasick inside a swirling vortex in the water. He felt the feeling of vertigo as he and the others were forcibly sucked downwards to who knows where. The blond-haired shinobi had been holding his breath until he realized that they _could _ breathe in the whirlpool. He let out the breath he had been holding and greedily inhaled air. He tried to keep his breathing steady as water spun around him, making him dizzy. The urge to regurgitate the breakfast he ate at the castle -which was absolutely delicious- was growing the more he stared at the spinning vortex. He swallowed hard and closed his eyes. He decided he woud only open when they reached their unknown destination.

* * *

_**Yeah, VERY short chapter. I know .. Don't kill me! The next chapter will be longer. Anyway, I'll try and update faster, so please take time to review! It let's me know that people actually like this fic. Kaaru out!**_


	8. Author's Note

**Author's Note!**

Sorry, this isn't an update that you were expecting. I'm afraid that I have some bad news -before anyone jumps to conclusions, I **will not **discontinue RMH. Moving on, I'm sorry to announce that RMH will undergo a temporary (hopefully short) hiatus.

WAIT! Lower those torches! Let me explain first. You see, my laptop finally decided to die on me. It's broken and that means I won't be able to get the files I stored there. I doubt I'll be able to update using another computer, so I have to have the laptop fixed (but I think it's already beyond repair) or buy a new laptop or computer. I'm so very sorry for the inconvenience everyone!

**- Kaaru Hyujiko**


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